On Friday, Joe Biden released his comprehensive roadmap to reopening schools safely.

Biden’s plan calls for establishing a sustainable supply chain for PPE, including fully utilizing the Defense Production Act to ensure enough masks for every school in America every day. Biden also calls for appropriate social distancing guidelines that match the virus trajectory in each community, as well as emergency funding so that schools have the resources to reconfigure central spaces, improve ventilation, and take other steps to physically distance and minimize risk of spread.

Ultimately, Biden believes that local, state, and tribal officials should make the decision about whether to reopen safely based on consultation with communities and tribal governments. The most important factor is the safety of students, teachers, and parents.

In response to his plan, education leaders in North Carolina spoke out in support:

“Joe Biden has been clear, his priority is protecting the health of students and educators,” said Congresswoman Alma Adams. “Joe Biden recognizes that proper emergency funding is critical for safe school reopening. In his plan, he lays out how he would move forward if he were President today, and he calls on Donald Trump and Senate Republicans to pass the education funding provided in the HEROES Act. House Democrats have provided a framework for how we can safely reopen our schools through HEROES and the Moving Forward Act. It's time for the Senate and the White House to step up to the plate and join us and Joe Biden in protecting the health and future of America's children."

“With a lack of guidance at the federal level, I am thankful to see Joe Biden stepping up with a comprehensive plan to send children back to school safely,” said former Congressman Bob Etheridge. “Not only is he trusting local officials to make the best decisions for their communities, but he will ensure that we provide teachers, students, and parents with the necessary resources to stay safe. His call for expanding broadband to every community across North Carolina is especially important in our state, as students in our rural areas are especially vulnerable to challenges with socially distant learning.”

“Our educators are underpaid and underappreciated, and now the federal government is pushing them to risk their health to return to the classroom even as COVID-19 cases skyrocket across the country,” said Democratic Nominee for State Superintendent Jen Mangrum. “Joe Biden’s plan accounts for the dire risks that teachers and students alike take on without proper protection, and it empowers Governors like Roy Cooper, who has worked with public health experts to communicate clear rules and guidelines for safe reopening.”