Districts and schools using a hybrid model will have to provide at least 35 hours of live instruction — a combination of in-person and synchronous remote teaching — over a 10-school day period.
Elementary and Secondary Commissioner Jeffrey Riley said the new regulations are aimed at addressing the isolation and disconnection caused by the COVID-19 pandemic that are driving a youth mental health crisis.
The amendments were approved Dec. 15 by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education on an emergency basis, and Riley said he plans to bring them back to the board for final adoption in February after a public comment period.