PLEASE SIGN PETITION FOR DISTANCE LEARNING OPTIONS FOR RHODE ISLAND SCHOOL CHILDREN.  Rhode Island school age children need an option for distance learning for the school year beginning August/September 2021.  The Executive Order issued by Govenor McKee on August 19 2021 entitled "Declaration of Disaster Emergency for New COVID-19 Variants" sets forth "since vaccines are only authorized for people 12 and older, people less than 12 years old are particularly susceptible to infection from the Delta Variant, which is more likely to affect children than the original strain" Further, he goes on to say "Rhode Island is seeing increasing cases of COVID-19 in children and expects to see more childhood cases increase. . . this increase in the prevalence of the Delta Variant poses a significant and imminent risk to Rhode Islanders of increased symptomatic disease, hospitalization and death."  We need to petition Governor McKee and the Rhode Island Department of Education to provide distance learning options for elementary school children. We CANNOT  be forced to send unvaccinated elementary school children into school buildings with the COVID 19 Delta Variant in "high transmission" rates in Rhode Island.  Parents need the option for distance learning for their children, especially in families with medical issues.  WE NEED A DISTANCE LEARNING OPTION FOR RHODE ISLAND CHILDREN NOW!