ALBANY, N.Y. - Making it official, Governor Andrew Cuomo on Friday announced that all schools and college campuses in New York State will remain closed for the remainder of the academic year because of the coronavirus.

“How do you operate a school that’s socially distanced with masks without gatherings with the public transportation system? So we’re going to have the schools remain closed for the rest of the year. We’re going to continue the distance learning programs,” Cuomo said at his daily briefing in Albany.

The governor said that a decision will be made by the end of the month about holding summer school classes while the state remains "On Pause" through May 15.

Cuomo’s decision about schools comes almost three weeks after Mayor Bill de Blasio first announced that New York City schools would remain closed for the academic year but the governor overruled him at the time, saying only he could make that decision and that it would be made in coordination with New Jersey and Connecticut. But on Friday, neither neighboring state made any announcement about its schools.

Cuomo says school breakfast and lunch programs will continue.

The governor also announced that the state will waive all co-pays and deductibles for essential workers who seek mental health services.

Cuomo also released his daily batch of statistics, noting that there were 289 COVID-19 deaths in New York State over the last 24 hours.

As people shelter at home, Cuomo noted there has been an alarming uptick on reported incidents of domestic violence. Complaints were up 15% in March and 30% in April.

The state is also looking to track new coronavirus cases. Preliminary data breaks down the new cases in the state as follows from the five boroughs:

  •     17.5% are from Manhattan
  •     17.4% are from Brooklyn
  •     12.8% are from The Bronx
  •     11.9% are from Queens
  •     2.5% are from Staten Island