Walz Orders Minnesota Schools Closed for Rest of School Year, Outlines Next Steps

April 23, 2020

Site Staff, The Associated Press,

(Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via AP, Pool)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Gov. Tim Walz on Thursday ordered Minnesota schools to stay closed through the rest of the academic year amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Walz, who is a former teacher, calls it “a heartbreaking decision.” The Democratic governor says he feels sorry for all the students who will miss out on graduations, tournaments, and end of year celebrations.

But Walz says the health and safety of Minnesotans is his top priority, so distance learning will continue through the end of this school year.

“While I recognize distance learning is a challenge for many families, it is critical to social distancing in Minnesota and supports the health of Minnesota’s families. We will continue looking for ways to improve the current system and better support our children,” Walz said in a statement.

Walz also announced his decision to allow certain non-critical businesses to safely return to work.

This will allow 80,000 to 100,00 Minnesotans to return to work in industrial, manufacturing, and office setting on Monday, April, 27.

“This is a limited first step in the process of safely reopening some businesses and returning Minnesotans to work,” said Department of Employment and Economic Development Commissioner Steve Grove. “We will continue to listen to and seek input from business and community leaders and work with public health experts on creative solutions to put more people back to work as safely and quickly as possible.”

Prior to loosening restrictions for a given setting, businesses must:

Create, share, and implement a COVID-19 Preparedness Plan that sets out the actions they are taking to ensure social distancing, worker hygiene, and facility cleaning and disinfection necessary to keep workers safe.
Engage in health screening of employees and ensure that sick employees stay home.
Continue to work from home whenever possible.

For more information, you can visit https://mn.gov/deed/newscenter/covid/safework/.