Premier Doug Ford says school will be back in session in September.
During his much-anticipated announcement, he mentioned that masks would be mandatory with the exception of those who have legitimate health reasons for not wearing one.
Schools will be open five days a week. Cloth masks will be mandatory for students in grades 4 to 12 but younger grades will not be required to do so.
Students in Kindergarten to Grade 3 will be encouraged but not required to wear masks in common spaces.
Ford reiterated the plan is backed by experts including the Chief Medical Officer of Health for the province Dr. David Williams.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce says there will be money provided to purchase masks and cleaning supplies, and to hire additional staff.
Enhanced protocols include:
- Requiring all child care staff to wear masks at all times, effective September 1;
- Ensuring frequent cleaning of child care centres;
- Screening of children and staff before entering a childcare facility;
- Maintaining attendance records for rigorous contact tracing and coordination with local public health authorities;
- Ensuring frequent hand washing and proper hand hygiene for children and staff; and
- Establishing clear and rigid case management protocols in the event a staff member or child becomes ill, or tests positive for COVID-19.
The government said the school system will be teamed up with public nurses to help monitor and respond to reports of COVID-19 symptoms in students and staff.
Secondary schools in designated school boards will open on an adapted model, with class sizes of 15 students, attending on alternate days, or alternate schedules that would represent in-person attendance for at least 50% of instructional days. However, the Superior North Catholic, Superior-Greenstone, Thunder Bay Catholic, Keewatin-Patricia, Kenora Catholic, Lakehead and Rainy River District School Boards are all considered non-designated school boards.
All elementary schools province-wide and high schools in northwestern Ontario will be permitted to operate five days a week.
The province is also providing school boards with more than $300-million extra to offset the cost of hiring extra staff and the purchase of personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies.
