The school system had hoped to welcome students back to buildings on Sept. 22, but can't. They need more time to hire additional teachers and iron out students' schedules, according to Donald Robertson, chief schools officer. The division

In Virginia Beach, students in most grades could be sauntering through hallways, with their pens, notebooks and backpacks in tow, in just a few weeks — ahead of many schools throughout the region.

The roughly hour-long rally was organized by Tim Anderson, a Virginia Beach attorney who led a recall effort to remove Lucas from office.

Police said the two officers, who have not been identified and were previously assigned to the 1st precinct uniform patrol division, will be placed on administrative assignment during the investigation.

The state’s seven-day percentage of positive PCR tests — the common diagnostic test which detects the virus — stayed the same at 7.8%. Just one Hampton Roads district was at or above 10% — Western Tidewater.

Virginia school leaders have said these new cuts — another $178 million was nixed earlier this year — threaten to significantly hamper the services they can provide. They are already operating with thin margins and unexpected costs continue to pile up.

The state’s seven-day percentage of positive PCR tests — the common diagnostic test which detects the virus — increased to 7.4%.

All of Virginia Beach’s nearly 70,000 students will start the school year virtually, but most grades could return for in-person classes as early as Sept. 22 with key health metrics continuing to improve.

If the area continues to see less than 10% of tests coming back positive and fewer than 264 new cases a day, students in pre-k through 6th grades, as well as 9th grade, could return for in-person classes if they opted to do so. Parents also had the choice for remaining entirely virtual for the semester.