Under the right conditions, medical experts say schools can and should stay open despite the COVID-19 pandemic. But with thousands of new cases reported daily across Oklahoma, some school districts continue to use caution despite political pressure from Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt.
On Friday, Stitt blasted Tulsa Public Schools Board for delaying reopening for in person classes until March 22nd in a statement sent to reporters. But local public health officials had pushed for the delay, citing a growing number of COVID-19 cases in the Tulsa area.
The governor has taken to social media to praise districts who are coming back, name-checking several on Twitter and Facebook over recent days as they reopen.
That includes Oklahoma City Public Schools, which announced some elementary students would return to school on a rotating basis Tuesday.
There will be a mask mandate at OKCPS, something the CDC and other health experts say is necessary to make in person schooling safe. However the governor hasn’t supported such a measure in schools statewide.
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