Update: Aug. 7, 5 p.m. with Elba Superintendent Ned Dale's comments
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Gov. Andrew Cuomo today announced that schools in New York State can open on time this fall.
The governor reported that the COVID-19 infection rate is low enough to allow all districts in the state to open, and mentioned the state’s success in fighting the coronavirus outbreak.
In a telephone press conference, Cuomo called it "great news."
“If you look at our infection rate, we are probably the best in the country right now ... so if anybody can open schools, we can open schools," he reasoned.
The governor later tweeted the following:
"Every region is well below our COVID infection limit, therefore all school districts are authorized to open. If the infection rate spikes, the guidance will change accordingly. School districts are required to submit plans to NYS for review."
He said that there is “significant anxiety” among teachers and parents in taking this step forward, and suggested that district administrators set up three sessions with parents over the next couple weeks.
Last week, about 700 school districts across the state submitted their reopening plans to the state education department outlining how they would reopen schools, with most districts offering "hybrid" plans with students in school on two or three days and out of school -- remote learning -- on two or three days.
Batavia City School District Superintendent Anibal Soler Jr. said he's pleased with the decision to reopen, but "now the real work begins around implementation and communication regarding some of the requirements involved."
He said that the governor is requiring districts to share more details about remote learning plans (expectations for parents, students and teachers) -- "that's something that we were already working on," he noted -- and to work with their health departments on COVID-19 testing and tracing, and understanding all the related protocols.
"We're excited to get to work and to get our kids back in the building, although, obviously not in the ideal (manner) -- everyday, all the time," he said.
Soler said he hopes that if all goes well, guidance would change to allow the district to "bring more kids in" and is keeping his fingers crossed that a vaccine is developed in the near future.
Some smaller school districts, such as Oakfield-Alabama in our area, have enough space to bring everybody back to the classrooms with masks and social distancing.
"I'm happy with the decision to have schools open, leaving the local decisions to each and every school district, and what's best for their own communities," said O-A Superintendent John Fisgus. "Obviously, he's following his previous metric calculations, being that we're certainly under the threshold of the spread of the COVID. So, I'm glad that he stuck to that and glad that he is leaving the decisions up to the school districts."
Fisgus added that "here in Oakfield, we're going to move forward with our 100-percent in-person learning, five days a week, and we will follow his guidance."
"We already have a task force committee that has met once already back in July. We have another meeting this Monday and the following Monday -- and an opportunity on August 24th at 5 p.m. where I will actually livestream all of this information to our community residents and they will have the opportunity to engage with questions and concerns," he said.
Elba Superintendent Ned Dale said he was glad to see that the governor used the low infection rate to make his determination.
"We will continue to communicate with the parents and staff to ensure a safe and smooth reopening," he said, speaking of the school's hybrid plan. "It is important to note that staff will need training and time to open safely and, similar to other districts, I will be recommending that we adjust our district calendar to reflect this significant need. We will now confirm with every student and parent their choice of returning or staying with a distance learning, as well as revising bus routes to reflect the ability for our students to get to and from school safely."
