Preparing for a New School Year Amid COVID-19

Dr. Carol Babb

A new academic year is set to begin on August tenth, after five months of leave from school due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Ahead of the reopening of schools however, there are many concerns being raised by parents and students alike.  Those anxieties include social distancing, the sanitization of classrooms, as well as hygiene practices that will now be enforced at every institution.  The resources necessary to carry out these measures are being provided by the Ministry of Education which has been receiving assistance from organizations such as UNICEF.  Earlier today, Dr. Carol Babb, Chief Education Officer, mentioned a list of agencies that have been working closely with government in providing the necessary sanitation supplies.

Dr. Carol Babb, Chief Education Officer

“The Ministry of Education is not leaving the managements on their own.  We have sought assistance from many agencies.  UNICEF has agreed to give us a hundred and twenty thousand dollars in sanitization supplies and those supplies will be shared with primary schools across the country.  We also have the Ministry of Health and they have promised to give us fourteen, they have already given us fourteen drums of hand washing liquid and again, that will be shared with every school in each district.  BEL has committed to fifty thousand dollars in supplies and in whatever we may consider necessary, whether it be hand washing basins, supplies or whatever the schools would like us to help with.  So I just want to assure the entire public that the Ministry of Education is not leaving all of these requests on the management.  We realize this is a very trying time, everyone is being faced with economic hardship but MOE, the Ministry of Education, is doing, we are doing our best to support our schools to ensure that schools are a safe place.”