Johnston County Public Schools released a statement Thursday afternoon addressing questions about student safety, potential school closures, cancelled field trips, and additional steps they are taking in regards to the coronavirus. Here is the full statement:
Johnston County Public Schools continues to work with our community health partners, state, and local officials regarding the progression and prevention measures of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Currently, experts are NOT recommending that K-12 schools close, but we are constantly receiving and actively seeking information from experts and staying in contact with all stakeholders to make the best decisions regarding our students and staff.
As Johnston County Public Schools continues to receive new information concerning the Coronavirus (COVID-19) from our community health providers, students, staff, and families can expect communication to be updated on our district website at www.johnston.k12.nc.us/coronavirus.
Our district developed and implemented a response plan last week which has been shared and reviewed with all schools and school leadership within the district. Our plan summarizes our preventive measures and provides daily updates for our schools. Further, a letter detailing the plan was provided to all school system parents on Friday, March 6.
Dr. Williams states, “The safety and well-being of our students, staff, and school community is our top priority. We will continue to provide our schools with current communication on COVID-19 (Coronavirus).”
At this time, all field trips are cancelled until further notice. The Johnston County Education Foundation has also cancelled its annual Showcase of Stars event which was scheduled for Saturday, March 14. All other events and decisions are being evaluated at this time as we continue to collaborate with our community health partners.
At this time, there are no plans to close schools. As decisions are made, the school system will communicate with those who are impacted through the district website, district social media outlets, and through our ConnectEd system.
Please review our district’s full Coronavirus Prevention Plan on our website, which includes information about hand washing, prevention, and the district’s sanitation plan, as well as information from the CDC.
