The West Virginia Department of Education voted Wednesday to not allow counties to offer countywide remote learning, leading to a change for back-to-school plans in Kanawha County, which had planned to stay in remote learning until Feb. 8, but agreeing to go to in-person classes for pre-K through eighth grade if the state mandated it. The state school board ruled out remote learning for all students in eighth grade or below, opening the door for in-person class beginning Jan. 19. Counties also have the option to resume under a blended model and individual students can continue to enroll in virtual learning. High schools will go remote if their county is red on the county alert system map on each Saturday.