Parents are chiming in as parts of Erie County have been given yellow zone designations by the state as COVID-19 cases increase in the area. 

What You Need To Know

  • Parts of Erie County were given yellow zone designations

  • It will require school districts in those areas to test 20% of students and staff who are physically in school for COVID-19 

  • Districts are waiting for guidance on the new mandate 

Yellow Zone guidelines restrict gatherings to 25 people or less. Indoor and outdoor dining is permitted, but a maximum of four people will be allowed at each table. Schools will remain open, but weekly testing of students and faculty is now a requirement. 

"We're seeing the cases increase, we're seeing the hospitalizations increase, and unfortunately we're seeing the deaths increase," said Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz during a news conference Monday.

As a result, students in Erie County are feeling the impact. With parts of the county now being declared yellow zones, districts in places like Amherst and Buffalo will be required to conduct COVID-19 testing each week for 20% of students and staff who are physically in school. 

"The Binax test kits, they're a little different from the test kits we used in the past,” Poloncarz said. “The schools will be responsible for actually performing the testing and the report results have to be provided to the Erie County Department of Health."

This has left parents with more questions than answers in an already unprecedented school year.

Rachel Fix Dominguez, who's the co-chair of the Buffalo Parent Teacher Organization, has questions on how testing will work, who’s overseeing the process, and who will pay for it.

Poloncarz says the state will allow nurses to conduct testing in schools and the testing doesn't apply to districts that are fully remote like Buffalo Public Schools. But as that district attempts to find ways to start bringing students back in-person, some think this could be a setback for them.

"We anticipated that there would be probably another surge so I'm not thinking that they'll probably be bringing families back to classrooms given those circumstances," said Jessica Bauer Walker, president of the Buffalo Public Schools Parent Community Health Worker Association

For other parents this is all a tough reminder that we're still in the thick of a pandemic. Some want officials to prepare for the worst so parents don't have to play catch-up like they did in the spring.

Shaqurah Zachery, who has kids in Buffalo and Williamsville schools questioned what’s the game plan going forward.

“Like now, we should be thinking about, we hope it doesn't happen but what does that look like,” Zachery said. “What resources are going to be available for parents and for students if we have to transition either into a full shutdown?”

Poloncarz says more information about testing will be released on Tuesday.