The number and type of in-person classes has been reduced, as has been the number of people living in the dorms. The semester will end November 25, prior to Thanksgiving, to avoid the risk of an outbreak in the days thereafter.
Certain preparations are universal. School districts share similar cleaning and disinfecting protocols, wearing masks and distancing rules. Most will offer transportation options to ensure safety both on the way to school and at the point of disembarkation. They will require daily screening for symptoms of Covid-19 or high temperatures, All districts have some idea of how they’ll handle an outbreak, including a plan for quarantine. And all are devising plans while simultaneously awaiting guidance from governor Andrew Cuomo, the state education department and local boards of health.
The Kingston school district may have selected its solution to pre-college education in the time of the pandemic, It may reopen schools for students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade this fall, with students in seventh through twelfth grades studying off-campus by enhanced remote learning.
With students set to return in early September or earlier, districts have been tasked with devising plans using state guidelines for opening in-person, remotely, or a combination of the two. Districts are required to submit their plans by July 31, and governor Andrew Cuomo is expected to announce the following week whether schools will reopen in the fall.
Throughout the student-provided testimonials, there are common threads of racial slurs being thrown casually and without disciplinary measures following. Not just the wearing of the Confederate flag on clothing, hats and jackets as well as cars, but also a dearth of information on black and Latinx history and heritage, and the absence of people of color in such roles as educators, administrators and coaches.
The Kingston High School Class of 2020 will hold an in-person graduation ceremony at Dietz Stadium this weekend, though it will actually consist of ten different ceremonies spread over two days.
After a survey, reviewing the Highland High School Class of 2020 survey results, the school district has decided to reschedule an in-person graduation on Thursday, July 30 at 7 p.m. The rain date will be July 31.
The New Paltz High School and New Paltz Middle School have joined 1600 schools across the country who have met the requirements of the AntiDefamation League’s No Place for Hate® program. In accordance with the school district’s initiatives on racial equity and the New York State Education Department’s continuum of well-being, both schools have been officially designated as “no places for hate” schools.
Kingston’s school district recently adopted an anti-racism resolution geared toward “creating truly inclusive environments” for its students.
There will be on-campus instruction and housing at SUNY New Paltz come the fall, but the amount of both will be reduced, and the length of the semester shortened, to accommodate life during a pandemic. The bulk of classes will continue to be taught remotely. Campus officials released the plan yesterday, with the caveat that all of it is subject to change with the circumstances. That warning is reinforced by a “pause and pivot” plan to shift back to fully remote learning if state officials deem that necessary.