Island Park School District amends reopening plan

After parents’ discontent about an original, hybrid reopening schedule, Island Park Public School District has amended the days of the week that students will be in the classrooms this fall.

Also, the district’s Board of Education voted Aug. 17 to create a fully remote plan for families who will not send their children to school in-person in September. The district has also provided further guidance for those students.

In mid-August, after the reopening plan was overwhelmingly met with distress from parents, the school sent out a survey with two options for a back-to-school plan. The first option was the original plan, which had students in either the Blue or Gold cohort, attending school and learning remotely on a rotating schedule. Parents were dissatisfied with this option because it did not give students set days of the week to attend school, but rather rotated days every other week.

“Working parents will suffer with Island Park’s plan,” Jaime Price, the mother of a fourth-grader at Francis X. Hegarty Elementary School, had said. “The rotating schedule is too fluid and will make it extremely difficult for parents to plan a schedule which will work with employers.”

The second option was new — Group A would attend school Mondays and Tuesdays, and Group B would attend school Thursdays and Fridays, with the two teams alternating Wednesdays or using it as a holiday makeup day.

The survey revealed that 86 percent of families preferred the second option, so the school has decided to go with that instead.

“Following our Special Board Meeting on Aug. 3, we received a common suggestion from our families regarding the proposed A/B Hybrid Schedule,” said Assistant Superintendent Vincent Randazzo. “We were encouraged to consider a consistent pattern of A/B days each week, rather than flipping them every other week.”

There was also previous confusion about what to do with students who choose full remote learning. In response, the district put out a survey to gauge interest among families for the full remote option, which revealed that about 10 percent of students will learn completely from home. Those families should consult with their building principals to work out remote learning schedules and to pick up materials.

The basics of in-person learning procedures, however, have remained the same from the original plan. Randazzo fielded questions from parents in three virtual meetings last week. District officials have also been updating a Frequently Asked Questions page on the district website. The FAQ covers topics of health and safety, teaching and learning, transportation and extracurricular activities.

During the meeting on Aug. 19, several parents asked about physical education, recess and outdoor learning opportunities. Randazzo said that both physical education and recess will be held outdoors. From there, the district will evaluate the remaining, available outdoor space so that teachers can bring students outside for class in a safe manner.

Randazzo also noted that the nurse’s offices will be designated for students exhibiting Covid-19-related symptoms, and they will have an isolation room where ill students can wait to be picked up.

The nurses will have an infrared forehead thermometer to check temperatures. There will be a separate, triaged area for students with other injuries and non-Covid-19-related health issues. All students must have their temperatures checked at home and fill out an online health form before entering the school buildings each day.

For more information about the district’s reopening plan — in English and Spanish — visit ips.k12.ny.us.