Ontario to announce school reopening dates on Wednesday

The Ontario government says families will know the reopening dates for schools on Wednesday.

On Monday, Education Minister Stephen Lecce said on Twitter, “we want all students in the regions back to class.”

“The Chief Medical Officer of Health confirmed to Premier Doug Ford & I that on Wednesday he will finalize his advice. The Government will provide certainty parents deserve by announcing on Wednesday the dates for reopening,” he said.

We want all students in all regions back to class.

The Chief Medical Officer of Health confirmed to Premier @fordnation & I that on Wednesday he will finalize his advice.

The Government will provide certainty parents deserve by announcing on Wednesday the dates for reopening.

— Stephen Lecce (@Sflecce) February 1, 2021

During a press conference on Monday, Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. David Williams said he would like to see all schools in the province reopen next week. However, he will get input from each region’s medical officer of health before finalizing any plans.

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“I’m hoping that by next week, the week of the 8th of February, to have our schools open across the province,” he said.

“So that’s the goal we are striving for but I want to make sure that is done in full consultation with medical officers so that they are agreeing that, yes, we are ready for it, we can handle that.”

Williams said that data is still being analyzed to see if schools can reopen by next week, with community transmission being of primary concern.

If the cases are in the range of 100 to 150 out of 100,000 in the region, then Williams said the schools can reopen with “proper checks and balances.”

He added that transmission rates have been declining recently and will continue to do so in the coming days.