Cranford Schools To Close Friday Amid Coronavirus, Then Update

BRANFORD, NJ — The Cranford School District announced on Thursday that schools will be closed Friday rather than Monday, amid concerns about the spread of novel coronavirus. The district will provide another update late on Friday.

Several area schools announced on Thursday that they will close for more than two weeks, including Summit and Millburn.

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Cranford Superintendent Scott Rubin wrote in a letter:

<blockquote>"As I mentioned in a previous communication, the Department of Education asked districts to develop a plan should it become necessary for a health-related school closure where the day would still count as a school day for students. In other words, the physical school buildings would be closed, but students would maintain learning in one form or another.

We had originally planned to close school for students on Monday, March 16th. We have decided to move up the time table, such that the District will, instead, be closed tomorrow, Friday, March 13th to all students so that we can develop strong and meaningful plans for your children in the event of health-related school closures due to the coronavirus (COVID19).

We will provide another communication tomorrow afternoon (Friday, March 13, 2020) regarding the status of school for the following week.

I apologize for the late notice, but as I am sure you are witnessing, this is an evolving situation.

Please know that we face this public health concern together and I thank you for your partnership in helping to keep our school community safe and healthy."</blockquote>

The state of New Jersey said Thursday that 29 cases have been confirmed. The numbers can be tracked in New Jersey via this link. And you can use this link to read about other New Jersey school closings.

Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that include the common cold as well as much more serious diseases. The strain that emerged in China in late 2019, now called COVID-19, is related to others that have caused serious outbreaks in recent years, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was on Jan. 21.

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