CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — The list of districts canceling or delaying school Monday to test for COVID-19 is growing.
Late Friday, the Cambridge Public School District cancelled school on Monday, Jan. 3, and Tuesday, Jan. 4.
The interim superintendent said the decision was made to allow for time to test teachers, staff and students.
Burlington and Lexington have also cancelled school on Monday to allow for more time to test teachers and staff.
Newburyport and Lincoln-Sudbury announced 2-hour delays Monday.
This comes after the Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education announced it would be handing out rapid at-home COVID-19 tests to all teachers and staff in the state.
Those tests were supposed to arrive Friday but were delayed due to national shipping issues.
DESE announced late Friday a batch of 227,000 rapid antigen tests from iHealth had arrived and would be handed out Saturday and Sunday at three locations across the state: Franklin, Barnstable and Pittsfield.
Following the delay, the Massachusetts Teachers Association called for the state to cancel school Monday.
“Massachusetts is one of only a handful of states supplying rapid tests to its teachers,” DESE spokeswoman Colleen Quinn said in a statement. “It is a not a requirement for teachers to return to work, or necessary to reopen schools after the holiday break. The commissioner is not going to close schools Monday, and asks teachers to be patient as we work to get tests in their hands this weekend. It is disappointing that once again the MTA is trying to find a way to close schools, which we know is to the extreme detriment of our children.”
In Cambridge, students can get tested for COVID-19 at the high school or one of three elementary schools in the city Monday.
Testing will run from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and does not require an appointment.
All students younger than 18 need parental consent to participate.Parents and guardians can give consent for their child to be tested through the Family Portal or by signing a paper copy of this form.
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