N.J. district reverses course, postpones return to classrooms as COVID cases rise Updated Apr 01, 2021; Posted Mar 31, 2021 The John F. Kennedy Educational Complex in Paterson, N.J., Jan. 21, 2020Rob Jennings / NJ Advance Media for NJ.com Facebook Share School district officials in Paterson reversed course Wednesday night and announced that all-remote learning will continue “until further notice.” The school board immediately accepted her recommendation. “We want to make sure that, when we return, we do so as safely as possible,” said school board president Kenneth L. Simmons. Approximately 28,000 students in Paterson, the state’s third-largest city, have been relying on virtual instruction from home since schools across the state first closed in mid-March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic.