The Lansing Board of Education is delaying the start of classes until after Labor Day.
Lansing schools were originally set to begin remote instruction on Monday.
However, the district is waiting on a backlog of about 3,800 personal learning devices that were ordered in April.
That’s pushed their start date to September 8.
There’s another reason for the delay.
This week, a district employee who entered six buildings to deliver supplies tested positive for COVID-19.
Spokesman Bob Kolt says because many teachers conducting remote learning will physically be in their classrooms, those buildings must be deep cleaned.
“So, while the students are not there, many of our employees will be there,” Kolt says. “So, that’s one of the reasons why we really have to make sure that those facilities are protected and cleaned for our staff and teachers.”
“This board of education, this district is not willing to gamble on the life of any member of our family, a member of our community,” says Board of Education President Gabrielle Lawrence. “So out of an abundance of caution, we decided to carefully sanitize those buildings where this person was.”
Some of those buildings will house the district’s new Learning Labs program, which gives working parents a safe place to bring their children for school.