INDIANAPOLIS — Marion County high school students can return to the classroom full-time for the first time in more than a year, the director of the Marion County Public Health Department said Thursday.
Dr. Virginia Caine said high schools can bring students back if certain safety requirements are in place.
Social distancing of three feet and masks will be required while students face the same direction and sit in assigned seats. Caine added that schools will need to implement robust contact tracing plans.
Elementary school students in Marion County resumed in-person learning full-time in January, but most high schools stayed on a hybrid schedule with students receiving 2-3 days of in-person education and the rest online. All Marion County schools closed a year ago at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The announcement comes as all Indiana teachers and school staff will be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine beginning next week.
Currently, teachers age 50 and over are eligible under the federal government's pharmacy program and can sign up to receive the vaccine at Kroger, Meijer and Walmart stores.
RELATED | Marion County schools can return to in-person learning Jan. 4 | COVID-19 vaccine eligibility set to expand next week
Watch Thursday's news conference in the player below:
