SAUGUS, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Saugus schools have been closed since last spring, and officials had hoped to reopen next week with a hybrid in-person learning model. However, the school committee has voted to put that move on pause.
According to Saugus' Superintendent David DeRuosi, the district's plan to offer in-person classes is being delayed amid a sharp uptick in the number of new cases of COVID-19, which has many parents concerned.
"Parents are legitimately worried about putting their kids back into school," DeRuosi said. "And their concerns don't lie with the schools' ability to handle it. They're concerned with the interactions of other children with other children and families, and everything going on in town."
Around two-thirds of the state's municipalities have reported an increase in the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 since the start of the year, according to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Over the past two weeks, the DPH says Saugus has seen an 11.37 percent jump in its average number of new cases of the virus.
DeRousi said remote learning is going well, so that will remain the educational reality for Saugus Public Schools until more people, including school personnel, are vaccinated against COVID-19.
WBZ NewsRadio's Carl Stevens reports:
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Written by Brit Smith
(Photo: Getty Images)