SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake City School District Officials tell FOX 13 three High Schools within the district are moving to virtual learning beginning Friday due to rising COVID-19 cases.
East High, West High and Highland High School will all be moved to virtual learning starting January 14. The District hopes students will be able to return to in person instruction on Wednesday, January 19.
Read - Utah surge ongoing with 12,990 new COVID-19 cases Thursday
The move comes as the high schools have already met the threshold for virtual learning under "test-to-stay" protocols. The State of Utah paused "test-to-stay" Thursday afternoon because health officials have begun to hit testing capacity.
Government leaders said the pause on the requirement was allowed in order to give individual schools and districts more power to pivot to remote learning if needed.
Read - Utah suspends school COVID-19 'test-to-stay' protocols
"Our schools play an essential function in our communities beyond providing our students with quality education, and we don’t take this decision lightly," said District officials. "We hope that, in conjunction with the upcoming three-day holiday weekend, these five days away from school will help us curb the spread of COVID-19 among our school community. At this time, we strongly encourage your child to isolate and if your child is unvaccinated, we encourage them to get vaccinated."
All activities that are not by the Utah High School Athletics Association will be canceled during the virtual learning period.
Free "grab and go" type breakfast and lunch meals will be handed out to students on Friday and Tuesday between 10 a.m. and noon and must be picked up by the student or their guardian at the following locations:
- East High School (West Parking Area – Enter from 900 South) 840 South 1300 East, Salt Lake City, Utah
- West High School (U-shaped Driveway – Located North of building next to cafeteria entrance) 241 North 300 West, Salt Lake City, Utah
- Highland High School (East Parking Area – Located next to the main entrance) 2166 South 1700 East, Salt Lake City, Utah
- Rose Park Elementary (West Parking Area – Located next to the main entrance) 1105 West 1000 North, Salt Lake City, Utah
- Glendale-Mountain View Community Learning Center (Parking Area – Located next to the main entrance) 1388 South 1340 West Navajo St, Salt Lake City, Utah
Other Utah school districts have also made the decision to switch to remote learning due to the increase in school cases.
For more information on the virtual learning days at East, West and Highland High Schools, click here.
