CHARLESTON, WV (WOWK) — At the Gov. Jim Justice’s COVID-19 briefing, he laid out specific plans for West Virginia K-12 students to return to the classroom. The previous target date of Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, will in fact be opening day for Mountain State public schools.

Each county will have its own specifics, but classes will be in session that day. However, if parents and students aren’t comfortable with being in the school buildings, they will have options.

“Then we’re going to make that child’s education, along with all the children’s education, that choose not to come to the schools, virtual. And we will absolutely deliver quality education,” said Gov. Jim Justice, R-West Virginia.

Justice also announced a new “Kids Connect Program.” It will set up 1,000 wireless internet hot-spots all across West Virginia, to help in areas with little or no broadband service, so that students who choose to attend school online, can connect. It includes college students, too.

“More than one- third of them didn’t have access to the internet at home. That meant that they weren’t able to access their education and that is simply unacceptable. We knew we needed a solution, and we needed it now. Not in six months, not in five years,” said Dr. Sarah Armstrong Tucker, Chancellor, West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission.

The governor also said he’s going to free-up more than $1.5 million in federal CARES Act money to help private and Christian schools in West Virginia, prepare for the upcoming year.

“West Virginia schools will be moving to a new color-coded system, ranking them green, yellow, orange or red, based up the severity of COVID in their communities. Parents can access the information online, to make informed choices for their children,” said Mark Curtis, 13 News Chief Political Reporter.