A hint from the Education Minister that fall school plans will be coming in July.

While a date for the guidance wasn’t offered, Stephen Lecce told reporters on June 17 that final guidance for in-person learning will come from the new chief medical officer of health Dr. Kieran Moore.

Ontario did unveil Friday that in-person summer school will be allowed in August with strict health and safety measures and the virtual programming will occur in July.

When it comes to September, the Lakehead School Board wants to know the government’s plan by August 5.

“It’s certainly a complex issue that we’ve seen over the last couple of months,” says Director of Education Ian McRae. “But with the vaccinations situation unfolding as it is, we’re expecting a normal return in September.”

McRae notes that last year, school boards weren’t given direction until the middle of August.

“We anticipate receiving additional money to assist in the remediation of ventilation concerns. Certainly with the aerosol transmission of the variants, we’re hoping we’re able to address even further,” notes McRae.

Lecce unveiled more than $1.6 billion will be provided to help protect staff and students from COVID-19 with infrastructure, ventilation and other health and safety improvements.

Ontario Liberal leader Stephen Del Duca feels the waiting game doesn’t help.

“It’s been such a horribly tough year and a bit for everybody,” Del Duca told Acadia News. “It just feels to me like this government is going to down the same path that they’ve used before, which I don’t think is good enough.”

Del Duca stresses that education partners are telling him that there’s been no meaningful outreach or consultation effort from the government.

“It gives me a great deal of concern that if the government isn’t talking to those women and men who have to deliver the plan, how did they come up with the plan in the first place?” asked Del Duca.

The province indicated that more than 53 per cent of youth in Ontario aged 12 to 17 have received at least one COVID shot.

 

With files from Kevin Jeffrey, Geoff Waterfield and Mike Ebbeling