Spring Recess

All schools will be closed for Spring Recess starting Thursday, March 28 through Monday, April 8. The first day back from break is scheduled for Tuesday, April 9. Have a safe and enjoyable break!

Select Page

The following letter was sent to East Greenbush Central School District families on Monday, December 14.

Dear Families:

As COVID-19 cases rise across our region and state, we continue to meet with other local superintendents and our county health department to discuss these developments and ways we can continue to keep our buildings open and safe. 

New York State has implemented a micro-cluster strategy to designate areas with high COVID-19 infection rates as Yellow, Orange, or Red zones, based on positivity rates and daily new cases. If a zip code, census tract or region is placed in one of those zones, there will be restrictions for schools.  

While East Greenbush Central School District is NOT currently in one of these zones, we are working with the county and Questar III BOCES to be ready if any part of our community is labeled as such. Our district plans to remain open for in-person learning should we enter a yellow or orange zone if we can comply with the state’s testing requirements.

On Friday, Governor Cuomo announced changes to the zone designation metrics: 

  • A Yellow Zone is a geographic area (zip code, census tract, etc.) with a 3 percent positivity rate over the past 10 days AND the cluster is in top 10 percent for hospital admissions per capita over the past week and week-over-week growth in daily admissions.
  • An Orange Zone is a geographic area (zip code, census tract, etc.) with 4 percent positivity rate over the past 10 days AND 85 percent hospital capacity OR the Department of Health determines unacceptably high rate of hospital admissions.
  • A Red Zone is a geographic area (zip code, census tract, etc.) that is 21 days from 90 percent hospital capacity. 

Based on our understanding, New York State will determine when an area or school district has been placed in a microcluster zone.

Screening Tests

In order for the East Greenbush Central School District to remain open while in a Yellow Zone, it must commit to conducting rapid screening tests on 20 percent of the in-person students and staff over a two-week period. Students and staff members will be randomly chosen from a pool of individuals who have given consent to testing. Should the results of those tests show a lower infection rate than the designated zone’s infection rate, our schools will remain open and no further testing will be required.

If East Greenbush Central School District enters an Orange Zone, we will need to continue to test different students and staff at a rate of 20 percent per month. 

If East Greenbush Central School District enters a Red Zone, we will need to continue to test different students and staff at a rate of 30 percent per month. The school district is preparing plans to train school nurses in the rapid-testing protocol.

Consent Form

Just as we have asked for your continued assistance with following the new COVID-19 protocols, we would need your permission to administer tests to your children. The East Greenbush Central School District will send out a test consent form in the coming days. This only applies to in-person or hybrid students. Students who are learning in a full virtual setting are not required to be tested.

Testing

The rapid test involves use of the Abbott, BinaxNow Antigen tests provided by the NYS Department of Health. This test involves a non-invasive cotton swab swiping just inside the lowermost portion of the nostril. These are not the deep-sinus swab tests that are conducted at medical facilities. The test results are available within minutes. Individual test results will only be shared with the family, the school nurse, and the local department of health. We will randomly choose students from a pool of individuals whose parents have consented to the test. If a student or staff member tests positive, they will be sent home and must stay at home until they are released by the county department of health. The district will inform the school community of any positive cases as it has done in the past.

Going Forward

We will be discussing the state’s micro-cluster strategy, among several other topics, at the Virtual Public Forum on Monday, December 21. A link to watch the live stream will be posted to www.egcsd.org that evening.

The school community will be updated if the state designates any part of our community as a cluster zone, including sharing additional information on our testing plan. Please continue to complete our COVID-19 Screening Form daily prior to sending your child to school.

As always, thank you for all that you do to support our school district. We continue to be encouraged by our community’s resilience amid adversity – and flexibility and patience throughout the pandemic. We will continue to put the health and safety of our students and staff at the forefront of every decision made.