pde

The Pennsylvania Department of Education announced March 23 all schools in the commonwealth will remain closed through at least April 6 as a result of the COVID-19 response efforts, according to Senate Appropriations Chairman state Sen. Pat Browne, R-16th.

The closure order could be extended beyond April 6 if necessary to save lives and stop the spread of COVID-19, according to PDE.

“During this public health crisis, the safety of our children needs to be one of our top priorities,” Browne said. Under the new timeline, school buildings would reopen April 7 for two days to allow school administrators, teachers and other staff time to prepare classrooms, set up cafeterias, schedule transportation and arrange other business operations. Students would return to school April 9, unless extending the closure is needed in response to the situation with the virus at that time.