CALIFORNIA GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (Matt Gush/Shutterstock).

Back to school this fall will probably mean to back to whichever room in your house that you keep your computers.

Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced that counties with high levels of coronavirus cases – including Orange County – may not resume in-person instruction this fall.

“The virus will be with us for a year or more, and school districts must provide meaningful instruction in the midst of this pandemic,” said the governor in a statement.  “In California, health data will determine when a school can be physically open – and when it must close – but learning should never stop.”

That means there will be virtual instruction for the majority of students in public school systems across the state. Schools will be allowed to open when their counties have passed public health “benchmarks” for 14 days in a row.

A distance learning regimen is expected to affect extracurricular activities as well as academic instruction. The CIF-SS, which governs interscholastic high school sports throughout most of Southern California, has scheduled an announcement on Monday about whether prep athletics will return in the fall.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

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