Brown County Schools will be on an extended spring break due to concerns about COVID-19, the coronavirus.
Superintendent Laura Hammack announced at 10:30 a.m. Friday that all schools and the Career Resource Center of Brown County would close at 6 p.m. and remain closed to all staff except the superintendent and director of maintenance until March 22, which is the end of spring break.
Additionally, school will not be in session from March 23 to April 6, and there will be no eLearning due to Gov. Eric Holcomb allowing schools up to a 20-day waiver. This extended closure will serve as a self-quarantine for students who may have traveled over spring break, Hammack wrote in a letter to parents.
In addition to classes, all spring athletic practices and events and other extra-curricular programming is being suspended until students return to school.
“School cancellation will be reviewed every day based on information that we are given from the State Department of Health,” Hammack wrote. “There is a possibility that we will need to extend this closure beyond April 6. We will keep you posted throughout the upcoming closure so that you can make ongoing plans for childcare.”
As of this morning, there have been no positive cases of COVID-19 in Brown County.
A total of 12 Hoosiers have tested positive through the Indiana State Department of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and a private laboratory, the ISDH reported this morning. Three are in Johnson County, which borders Brown County to the north; two are in Hendricks County; two in Marion County; and one each in Boone, Howard, Noble, Adams and St. Joseph counties.
Other area school districts also have announced closures.
Martinsville schools will be out until March 30, with a week of eLearning next week. Monroe County Community School Corp. will be closed through March 27. Richland-Bean Blossom Community School Corp. in Monroe County will be out until April 6.
Brown County Schools is planning to establish a system for daily delivery of meals to families at home using school buses, starting the week of March 23, Hammack added. The details of that program have not been determined at this time.
“These are unprecedented times where unprecedented decisions are being made. Our hearts break for the events and activities that will have to be canceled and will make every effort to reschedule,” Hammack wrote. “Additionally, as educators, it is very difficult to comprehend such a large amount of educational time being lost.
“Unfortunately, there are simply too many unknowns at this point to be decisive in long-term planning. We will make the best decisions that we know to make today and will keep you informed throughout these extraordinarily challenging times.”
