Cuomo makes the call: Schools can reopen

Cuomo makes the call: Schools wills reopen: Governor Andrew Cuomo announced today that with New York COVID infection rates holding at around 1%, that schools can reopen in the fall. The 1% infection rates are well below the 5% threshold the Governor set to trigger school reopening in his guidance several weeks ago.

While schools can reopen, Cuomo said that school’s will not be required to provide in-person, on-site classes. That decision remains up to the individual school districts. Each district was required to submit three sets of reopening plans by Friday, July 31 – including plans for full-time in-school classes, an exclusively remote learning plan, and a hybrid plan. Though most seem to favor a hybrid plan.

Cuomo further explained in his Friday press briefer that each plan must address how the district will handle testing, contact tracing and remote learning. He emphasized that the state will not impose a one-size fits all plan because each of the districts are so different. No decision has been made on how to handle school sports in the fall.

Out of 800 New York school districts, 127 did not meet the July 31 deadline and 50 plans have already been designated as incomplete or deficient. All district plans must be approved by the New York State Department of Health in order for the schools to reopen. Cuomo describes this call as a “preliminary” decision which he could still reverse if infection rates spiked to 9% before opening day.

New York State infection rates have remained around 1%, despite some daily spikes, since June 16 after peaking at just under 50% on March 30. Steady declines post-peak reduced infection rates to 14.7% on April 30 and 1.9% by May 31. Current New York State COVID hospitalizations hit a pandemic low of 556 on Saturday. August 1. The three-day average of COVID deaths from July 30 to  August 1 dropped to 4- the lowest since mid-March.

Below are snapshots of scheduling plans submitted by Westchester County schools last Friday. They illustrate many different approaches conceived by individual school districts. You can click on the link for your school district for more details on their mask, social distancing, health check, contact tracing, cleaning and hygiene protocols.

• Byram Hills: Grades K-5 would have four full-days in school with a half-day on Wednesday. Sixth grade students would be in-school for five full days. Grades 7-12 would be split into two groups, one group would be in-school on Mondays and Tuesdays, and the other would be in-school on Thursdays and Fridays. The two groups would alternate in-school attendance on Wednesdays.
• Bedford School District will post their full plans online this week. In a letter to parents on July 28, Interim School Superintendent Dr. Joel Adelberg provided a sneak preview of the district’s plans opening in September. They include the possibility of full-time on-premise classes for students K-2. And a hybrid model for grades 3-12 with on-premise classes operating at 50% capacity five days a week. Students would be divided into two groups by alphabet with each group alternating with two days in-class one week and three days the next.
• Chappaqua: The district plan will be submitted by Aug. 7.
• Katonah-Lewisboro: The Katonah-Lewisboro school district reported on Friday that they cannot support a full in-school model under current social districting guidelines. Their hybrid plan splits all students from K-12 into two-groups that would alternate on successive days between in-school and remote classes. Under this plan all students would be have a device to enable remote learning.
• Mount Pleasant: K-5 students would be split for on-site classes on either a Monday/Wednesday or Tuesday/Thursday schedule. Both groups would alternate Fridays for on-premise classes. Students in grades 6-12 would attend on on alternating days, Monday through Thursday. Fridays would be remote learning for all students.
• North Salem: North Salem would also split students at all level into two groups with on group attending live classes on Mondays and Tuesdays, the second group would be in-school on Thursdays and Fridays and the two groups would alternate Wednesdays for on-premise classes. Student schedules would remain the same whether students are attending classes on-site or virtual, and all students would be issued a device to enable remote learning.
• Pleasantville: All students would have remote instruction on Mondays, followed by every other day in school attendance for grades 1-12. . When students are not in school, they would participate in self-guided work rather than live instruction. Kindergarten students would spend half the day in school.
• Somers: All K-6 students would attend school five days a week. Students in grades 7-12 would attend every other day, with classes streamed live when students are at home. All students would be provided a device to enable remote learning.