SLS 20RS-722 ORIGINAL
2020 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 22
BY SENATOR BARROW
BESE. Requests BESE to suspend statewide standardized assessments for the 2019-2020
school year due to COVID-19.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To urge and request the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to suspend all
3 statewide assessments for the 2019-2020 school year due to the imminent threat
4 posed to the citizens of Louisiana by COVID-19.
5 WHEREAS, a novel coronavirus named "coronavirus disease 2019", commonly
6 referred to as COVID-19, was first detected in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, in
7 December 2019; and
8 WHEREAS, the coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that are common in
9 people and many different animal species; and
10 WHEREAS, COVID-19 is a respiratory illness that has a broad range of symptoms
11 from mild, flu-like symptoms to severe breathing difficulties that can result in death; and
12 WHEREAS, the first confirmed instance of person-to-person spread of the virus in
13 the United States was recorded on January 30, 2020; and
14 WHEREAS, on that same day the World Health Organization declared the outbreak
15 "a public health emergency of international concern"; and
16 WHEREAS, the rapid spread of COVID-19 led the World Health Organization to
17 upgrade its declaration to a "global pandemic" on March 11; and
18 WHEREAS, the first presumptive positive case of COVID-19 in Louisiana occurred
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SLS 20RS-722 ORIGINAL
1 on March 9, 2020; and
2 WHEREAS, the governor of Louisiana declared a public health emergency on March
3 11, 2020, as a result of COVID-19; and
4 WHEREAS, at present there is no vaccine to protect against COVID-19 and there
5 is a high probability of widespread exposure and the disease poses an imminent threat to
6 Louisiana citizens; and
7 WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, it was reported that more than 1.3 million K-12
8 students in the United States have been impacted by school closures related to COVID-19
9 and the number is expected to increase; and
10 WHEREAS, Louisiana's mandated annual statewide assessments are scheduled to
11 start in the next few weeks; and
12 WHEREAS, student anxiety over the virus and unrest caused by school closures will
13 likely negatively impact student test performance; and
14 WHEREAS, results from these assessments have a great impact on students,
15 teachers, schools, and districts; and
16 WHEREAS, the health of Louisiana's students, teachers, and other school employees,
17 and not test results, should be of the utmost concern.
18 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
19 urge and request the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to suspend all
20 statewide assessments for the 2019-2020 school year due to the imminent threat posed to the
21 citizens of Louisiana by COVID-19.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
23 president of the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Cheryl Serrett.
DIGEST
SCR 22 Original 2020 Regular Session Barrow
Requests the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to suspend all statewide
assessments for the 2019-2020 school year due to the imminent threat posed to the citizens
of Louisiana by COVID-19.
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