Since The Start Of The School Year, At Least 1,000 Schools In 35 States Have Closed For In-Person Instruction

Since the start of the school year, at least 1,000 schools in 35 states have closed for in-person learning due to COVID-19, according to Burbio, a New York-based data organization that tracks K-12 school closing patterns.

The company's tracker shows that schools have been closed for range from one day to several weeks. For the time being, the majority of students have switched to online study. Others were forced to close without warning. According to Burbio, a small percentage of students postponed the start of school or switched to hybrid learning.

The increased number of closures coincides with a fight in schools over mask requirements and an increase in pediatric COVID-19 infections, mostly due to the extremely contagious delta form.

President Joe Biden's administration stated late last month that it is looking into five states that have banned districts from requiring children to wear masks, claiming that such rules violate the civil rights of children with disabilities and underlying health concerns.

In a statement, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said, "The department will fight to protect every student's right to access in-person learning safely and the rights of local educators to put in place policies that allow all students to return to the classroom full-time in-person safely this fall."