New Delhi (NVI): New York City will reopen its public schools for in-person classes from December 7, despite the surge in COVID-19 cases in the city.
The city Mayor Bill de Blasio made the announcement at a press conference and said, “Some elementary schools and pre-kindergarten programs will resume classes from December 7. Others will take longer to reopen their doors.”
“School programs serving special-needs students at all grade levels, known as District 75, will open to in-person learning starting December 10”, the Mayor said, adding that, the plan for reopening middle and high schools is still being developed.
Earlier, New York City’s public schools opened to in-person classes starting in September for students whose parents had chosen bricks-and-mortar schooling. However, school buildings closed again on November 19 amid rising COVID-19 infections in the city, according to the reports.
De Blasio further informed that many of those returning in-person classes will be attending five days of class a week, up from one to three days previously.
Also, students attending in person classes will be required to undergo frequent testing for the virus. Previously, the city had set a target of testing 20 per cent of teachers and students in each school building once a month. Now, the testing will be weekly.
Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza, who joined the mayor at the conference also said, “With the new measures it is believed the city could safely and successfully keep our schools open for the duration of this pandemic.”
“Getting our kids back in school buildings is one of the single most important things we can do for their wellbeing, and it’s so important that we do it right,” he added.
Meanwhile, the coronavirus deaths added up to 34,561 and the confirmed cases to 6,41,161 in New York City, according to the John Hopkins University data.
-RJV
