UPDATE 4:27 p.m. Wednesday, April 1 - Butte County Superintendent of Schools, Mary Sakuma announced the decision to extend the closure of school campuses in Butte County for the remainder of the 2019 to 2020 school year, while focusing on distance learning for students.

This comes after Governor Gavin Newsom said Wednesday that schools should plan on teaching from afar for the rest of the academic year because it’s unlikely the coronavirus will allow them to reopen before summer.

“To be clear, the 2019-2020 school year is not over, it has just transitioned from classroom instruction to distance learning," Sakuma said. "Distance learning is taking place in different ways throughout our county and we encourage you to contact your students’ teachers and administrators for confirmation of specific plans. Distance learning can and will look differently for each school and each district. We ask for patience and understanding as we are all quickly transitioning into a new way of teaching and learning to meet the health and safety impacts of COVID-19. It’s challenging to our educators and our families to learn and communicate in a very new world, but working together, we can and will meet this challenge. As Superintendent Thurmond stated, “We have to rise to the challenge for our students! We are stronger together!”

Sakuma added that in the coming days and weeks, school districts will provide their families with information regarding how grades, graduation, transcripts, scholarships, summer school, and continued distance learning instruction will be dealt with.

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BUTTE COUNTY, Calif. – The Butte County Superintendent of Schools, Mary Sakuma announced Tuesday that Butte County school campuses will remain closed for in-person instruction at least through May 1, 2020.

“In consideration of the President’s announcement to the nation that he was extending the Stay At Home Guidance to the end of April, along with Governor Newsom’s ongoing Order to Shelter-in-Place, and in consultation with statewide and local school leaders, it was clear that this is the appropriate decision. With more confirmed cases of COVID-19 in our County, our state and our nation, now more than ever, we need to heed the Stay at Home/Shelter in Place Orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” said Sakuma.

Sakuma expressed the importance of students staying engaged with their teachers and schools through distance learning opportunities, including online learning and other means offered by their local schools.

“Our campuses are closed, but school is still in session. I’m so proud of the work that our teachers and staff members throughout the county are doing to provide robust learning opportunities to our students. This has been a very quick transition, but I know that our school teams are up for the challenge. I’m also very proud of our nutrition teams throughout the county who are getting meals to kids, even during these closures. The leadership that our superintendents, principals, charter schools and other school leaders are providing is top-notch. There are also so many heroic support staff out there doing the important work that is so essential to the services we provide. I want to thank our parents and community members for their patience, understanding, and support as we continue to navigate through these challenging times.”

Butte County Office of Education, in partnership with Chico Unified School District, is engaging the services of Care Solace. It’s an online resource for accessing mental health services, resources, and virtual therapy options. The county said these services will be available on the BCOE website, Wednesday, April 1.

For food and nutrition, meals for students will continue to be distributed throughout the county, according to the office of education. In some cases, families will be able to pick up meals twice a week for multiple days. For a map of distribution locations, Click Here