Ohio schools will be closed for a period of three weeks beginning Monday.

“We are announcing today that children in the state will have an extended spring break,” said Governor Mike DeWine during a press conference Thursday.

At the end of that three-week period, whether or not schools will re-open will be evaluated.

“Each school will determine access to the building after that,” said DeWine.

According to DeWine, food services will be continued.

“I am not minimizing the impact that this has on families,” said DeWine. “We thought long and hard about that and we understand the sacrifice that this is going to entail.”

DeWine said he is aware of the sacrifice parents will have to make to provide childcare for their children during this period.

“We know it’s disruptive to the families, but we have to do this if we’re going to slow this down,” said DeWine.