Much like its approach to phased reopenings, Maryland will give jurisdictions the option of holding in-person classes this fall.

Maryland Schools Superintendent Karen Salmon announced at a press conference Wednesday that schools have until August 14 to submit education recovery plans, describing how they will reopen, to the state board of education.

Schools will be allowed to hold in-person classes so long as they follow three-pronged state guidance. Those include following CDC guidelines, such as wearing face-coverings, social distancing, and handwashing; adhering to state protocols for an outbreak, which includes addressing and reporting known cases of COVID-19; and meeting a set of benchmarks that including maintaining a curriculum, identifying learning gaps, ensuring safe transportation, tracking attendance, and more.

“As we reimagine all our schools this fall, we remain committed to building a system that will delivery education safety and effectively to each and every student, with educational equity and justice as the cornerstone,” Salmon said.

The state has dedicated more than $255 million in CARES Act funding to education, with $25 million set aside to expand broadband access,  $5 million of which is for urban areas, Salmon said.

Also, $100 million of the $255 million has been allocated to equip students with up-to-date devices and connectivity, another $100 million for tutoring programs to address learning loss, and $10 million will go toward expanding broadband internet access by constructing a wireless education network in Western and Southern Maryland and on the Eastern Shore.

“We know that longstanding gaps in education, opportunity and access have been further exposed and widened by COVID-19. Our goal with these resources is to give local school systems the support and flexibility to prioritize students most impacted by this crisis,” Salmon said.

In response to the announcement, Maryland State Education Association President and Baltimore County elementary school teacher Cheryl Bost urged that schools reopen the 2020-20201 school year with virtual learning, according to a press release.

“Virtual learning is not a perfect solution, but it’s the safest and focusing on just one mode of education enables educators to direct their total attention to making it more rigorous and equitable. We must do all we can to get the virus under control so that we can safely return to in-person learning—which we know is most beneficial to our students over the long-term,” she wrote.

Bost also called on federal, state, and local officials to provide the necessary funding–which she said has to date not been seen–to ensure a successful school year.

The debate over whether schools should have an in-person, virtual, or hybrid reopening this fall have weighed health concerns from teachers, students, and parents with the possible setback and learning gaps students lacking the necessary educational resources might incur. The state’s largest teachers union previously sent Gov. Larry Hogan a letter asking that state leaders allow only virtual learning at the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

So far, Anne Arundel, Prince George’s, Howard, and Montgomery counties have announced they will institute online learning for at least the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

During the press conference, Hogan also cleared the air regarding voting during the upcoming November election, reiterating that every person will receive an absentee ballot application rather than a ballot, after calling the state’s June 2 primary an “unmitigated disaster.”

Hogan said he is “strongly encouraging Marylanders to vote by mail.”

“I’m calling on the leaders of both parties to stop all the political nonsense and to join me in encouraging people to vote…in whichever way they choose,” he added.

Protesters and Democratic lawmakers rallied in Annapolis on Wednesday calling on Hogan to reverse his decision requiring people to request mail-in ballot applications and provide $20 million in additional funds for printing and distributing mail-in ballots.

“We’re encouraging Marylanders to vote early in order to avoid any possible crowds on Election Day,” Hogan said. “And on Election Day, as the law requires in Maryland, the polls will be open. We cannot have a repeat of the primary where people were unable to cast their vote, they didn’t know their precincts were closed, where to go. I don’t think you can have anything tougher to suppress the vote than not having the polls open.”

This story has been updated to reflect Montgomery County Public Schools will offer online learning for the 2020-2021 school year.