Coquitlam
Port Coquitlam
Port Moody
Homeless vulnerable, some services are suspended
Closures, plus deadline for utility payments is extended
Amid pandemic shutdowns, first PoMo pot shop to open
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T H U R S D AY
|
MARCH 19
|
2020
Coquitlam’s Coquitlam’s
Spring & Summer Summer Program Program Guide Guide
View the online guide at coquitlam.ca/programguide
COVID-19: MASKED & WORRIED
COVID-19: SCHOOLS CLOSED
How will students be taught? Probable move to online instruction for kids across B.C. DIANE STRANDBERG dstrandberg@tricitynews.com
Tri-City students won’t be returning to school after spring break. Instead, alternative forms of instruction, likely online, will be provided, with planning underway right now. Education Minister Rob Fleming made the announcement Tuesday in a press conference with Premier John Horgan and Finance Minister Carol James. “As the global pandemic of COVID-19 is evolving quickly and is having a growing impact in B.C., we have to take action today to protect our students and staff and keep our schools safe,” he said as the government indefinitely suspended in-class instruction for students in kindergarten to Grade 12. More information will be
Shannon Johnstone, who works at Church’s Chicken at Johnson Street and Glen Drive in Coquitlam, makes her way home from a day’s work Tuesday. Between work and riding SkyTrain, Johnstone said she’s worried she will bring the virus back to her parents, one of whom is in a high-risk category. For more COVID-19 coverage, please go to pages 3, 7, 9, 11 and 17. For even more coverage, updated frequently, please visit tricitynews.com/covid-19. STEFAN LABBÉ/THE TRI-CITY NEWS
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provided in the coming days and the Coquitlam Teachers’ Association president, Ken Christensen, said he has already spoken with both the BC Teachers’ Federation and School District 43 to see how this will play out. As yet, there’s not much specific information. “Everybody’s working fulltilt on this,” Christensen told The Tri-City News, noting that it’s fortunate there are still several days left of spring break to get instruction plans ready. For now, it appears teachers will be returning to schools March 30 and will be delivering instruction but without students in the classroom. “Teachers are expected to return to work after spring break and follow their usual schedules. They will be expected to make connections with students and families and make sure there’s some kind of continuing instruction,” Christensen said. SEE
SD43 INSTRUCTION, PAGE 3
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