ANNAPOLIS, MD—Governor Larry Hogan and State Superintendent Dr. Karen Salmon held a press conference on Thursday afternoon calling on Maryland school systems to return to in-person hybrid instruction no later than Monday, March 1, 2021.

State health officials are providing counties with additional protocols and educational design recommendations.

Governor Hogan and Dr. Salmon have written a letter to teachers union leaders asking them to aid in this effort.

Dr. Salmon recently announced another $780 million in federal relief for school systems to address the effects of the pandemic, and a total of more than $1.2 billion has been made available.

Maryland has prioritized teachers and education staff for COVID-19 vaccinations. School systems have begun implementing their plans to vaccinate staff.

Epidemiologists from the Maryland Department of Health have provided a dashboard that tracks outbreak-associated cases in schools.

Governor Hogan highlighted that the American Academy of Pediatrics recently stated that “children absolutely need to return to in-school learning for their healthy development and well-being, and so safety in schools and in the community must be a priority.”

Maryland’s updated school reopening guidelines can be viewed below.

Click to access MD-School-Reopening-Guidance.pdf