The academic year could start in late July or early August to address learning losses brought on by coronavirus-forced school closures affecting about 6.1 million California students, Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday.
“We recognize there’s been a learning loss because of this disruption. We’re concerned about that learning loss even into the summer,” Newsom said. “Our kids have lost a lot with this disruption…. And you can either, you know, roll over and just accept that or you can do something about it.”
Newsom’s schools announcement came during his briefing about California’s four-phase plan to gradually reopen. The governor said the state is currently in the first phase. The second phase, which would allow select “lower risk” businesses to reopen and loosen limits on access to public spaces, might include a plan for physically reopening some K-12 campuses to offer summer school programs or consider an earlier start to the new school year.