A-B-C should be as easy as 1-2-3, but school districts around New York state say that's not the case when it comes to reopening plans. Right now schools have their drafts ready to go, to be submitted to the governor's office by Friday.


What You Need To Know

  • Schools in New York have until the end of this week to submit reopening plans to the governor’s office
  • The Niagara Falls School District will use a hybrid method to start off the year
  • The superintendent says if they get a red light, they're ready to be fully remote

"We're planning a slow steady return, which you may know as the hybrid method," said Mark Laurrie, superintendent of the Niagara Falls School District.

The hybrid method has two days on and two days off, along with one day off in the middle. Laurrie says his district is splitting the days alphabetically.

"This plan would bring kids in-person two days, and working at home three days,” he said.

Laurrie tells Spectrum News that this plan wouldn't be permanent. It would be re-evaluated after three weeks and if it doesn't work, they'd switch to fully remote. He says the driver for this type of approach to reopen is busing.

"It’s next to impossible to bus 5,000 students and keep social distancing, even with face masks," Laurrie said.

Laurrie says this way they can have a limited number of students in the classrooms and be able to keep the desks six feet apart.

"That will allow for face covering breaks,” he said. “It's intrusive I feel to have to wear them, for anyone, for over an hour."

Laurrie added that if they get to move forward from this hybrid plan, bringing in the younger kids first would be the better option because older grades have an easier time with remote learning.

He says this decision also corresponds with the CDC's guidelines earlier this month that there has been no data that children are drivers of the coronavirus.

"The science is showing that younger students aren't as vulnerable as some of our staff,” said Laurrie. “We do have some with compromising conditions in some cases and we'll have to make yet to be determined accommodations."

The plans for the Niagara Falls School District will be sent in as is. Laurrie says now it's a waiting game until Governor Cuomo gives his decision on August 7.