Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 3-20-20

CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK
Governor Extends Closure Of All Public Schools Statewide
Russell Wilson And Wife Ciara Donating 1 Million Meals To Seattle Food Bank
On Tuesday afternoon dur- ing a press conference, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced he is extending school closures across the state.
Students and staff will not return to school until April 15.
Here is what this closure means for our schools:
All schools will be closed until April 15;
All extra-curricular activi- ties will be canceled until April
15;
All K-12 state-wide assess-
ments are canceled for this school year; and
School grades will not be provided for this school year
The state is still determin- ing 3rd grade retention and promotion requirements, as
well as 12th grade graduation requirements. The number of instructional hours that stu- dents must have as credit for this school year are being re- viewed by the state.
The Hillsborough County School District has devised an eLearning Contingency Plan, but will now ramp up plans to ensure there is a continuity of learning for all students for the next month.
The Governor is allowing school districts to use flexible funding to purchase mobile devices for students.
A spokesperson for the School District said, “Our dis- trict will work on a plan to de- ploy existing devices for students in need and to pur- chase more devices as needed.”
Last week, Charter Com- munications stepped up and offered free access to Spectrum Broadband and Wi-Fi for 60- days.
For more details on how to access these services, families can go to Hillsborough- Schools.org/coronavirus.
School Board meeting re- quirements are being reviewed by the state and may have to occur virtually or be canceled.
The spokesperson further said, “As you can see, this is an evolving situation. We will be in constant contact with the Florida Department of Educa- tion and are waiting for further direction from the state. We will communicate the informa- tion with our families, stu- dents and staff as we know more.”
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and his wife, Ciara are giving back to the Seattle community that has been decimated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ciara shared a video on Twitter Tuesday night in which Wil- son talked about how the coronavirus pandemic is “changing the world, second by second, minute by minute” and causing so much tumult in communities around the world.
The couple also announced that they will be donating 1 million meals to Food Lifeline, a Seattle-based food bank.
This generous donation will certainly make a difference to those who need help in this trying time. On Sunday, J.J. Watt and his wife, Kealia Ohai, made the same commitment to a Houston food bank, donating $350,000 to supply 1 million meals for their com- munity.
Kevin Durant Among Four Brooklyn Nets Players Who Tested Positive For COVID-19 Virus
KEVIN DURANT
The coronavirus continues to impact the sports world. On Tuesday, Kevin Durant and three other Brooklyn Nets players tested positive for COVID-19. The names of the four players were not made
public in the team release, but Kevin Durant soon spoke out about his condition with Shams Charania of The Ath- letic.
"Everyone be careful, take care of yourself and quaran- tine," Durant said. "We're going to get through this."
There are now seven NBA players that have tested posi- tive for COVID-19. Rudy Gobert was the first, followed by his Utah Jazz teammate Donovan Mitchell and De- troit Pistons forward Chris- tian Wood. Because of Gobert's positive test and due to concerns over the global outbreak, the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season last week. The league remains hopeful of resuming operations in mid- to-late June.
PAGE 4-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2020