Friday, Sept. 18, 2020
Gov. Roy Cooper says elementary students can return to school. CMS releases its phase-in plan to bring kids back to the classroom. Mecklenburg County’s coronavirus numbers continue to decline, but a Labor Day spike is still possible. The first of three planned debates between North Carolina’s Republican and Democratic U.S. Senate candidates takes place with the virus taking center stage.
On the next Charlotte Talks Local News Roundup ...
Gov. Cooper announced Thursday that elementary students can return to the classroom in North Carolina. CMS also released its phase-in plan to bring kids back to the classroom this week. Younger students go first. High schoolers, last.
A lawsuit filed earlier this month by CMS parents who want students back in the classroom is now being called into question. The lawsuit says that “the digital divide created by remote learning harms students and in particular socioeconomically disadvantaged and minority students.” But all of the plaintiffs in the case are white. We’ll talk about why this doesn’t sit well with some area education advocates.
Coronavirus numbers continue to go down in Mecklenburg County, with the positivity rate at 5.8% and hospitalizations continuing to decrease. But county Health Director Gibbie Harris says a Labor Day spike is still possible, with the delay in how long it sometimes takes for symptoms to appear. We’ll talk about what the numbers mean for reopening of schools and businesses in the region. And we’ll hear what North Carolina Health Secretary Mandy Cohen had to say about the vaccine testing process.
It’s election season, and although the contest for president is a hot one, the first of three planned debates happened this week between Republican Thom Tillis and Democrat Cal Cunningham in their race for U.S. Senate and gained much attention. Not surprisingly, Coronavirus and a COVID-19 vaccine took center stage at the debate. We’ll discuss.
And Hurricane Sally makes landfall and affects weather in the Charlotte area.
Join Mike Collins and our roundtable of reporters for that news and more the local news roundup.
Guests:
Nick Ochsner, WBTV’s Executive Producer for Investigations & Chief Investigative Reporter
Jonathan Lowe, anchor/ reporter for Spectrum News
Joe Bruno, WSOC-TV Reporter
Ann Doss Helms, WFAE Education Reporter
