PK-12 Half Day - Friday, April 26

All East Greenbush CSD schools will have a half day on Friday, April 26 due to professional development. Dismissal Times: Columbia (10:03 a.m.), Goff (10:40 a.m.), Pre-K at DPS/Genet/Green Meadow/Red Mill (10:45 a.m.), Genet (11:15 a.m.), Bell Top (11:30 a.m.), DPS (11:30 a.m.), Green Meadow (11:30 a.m.), Red Mill (11:30 a.m.).

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Board of Regents Cancels Some State Tests in 2021 Due to Ongoing Pandemic

Mar 25, 2021 | Bell Top, Columbia, District, Genet, Goff, Green Meadow, Red Mill, Sutherland

The Board of Regents voted unanimously on March 15 to cancel all but four Regents Exams for June and cancel all Regents Exams in August due to the ongoing pandemic. The only Regents Exams that will be administered are federally mandated and include Algebra I, English, Earth Science (Written Test only) and Living Environment.

Passing the exams will not be a requirement for earning diplomas; students must pass the course to graduate.

Additionally, only Session 1 of the Grades 3-8 English Language Arts (ELA) and Math Tests will be required and only the Written Test component of the Grades 4 and 8 Science Tests will be administered. There will not be a Performance Test component.

The NYS Education Department applied for a federal waiver in February to cancel all state assessments for this spring, including Regents Exams. However, the U.S. Department of Education then issued a press release that it would not approve a blanket waiver for state assessments. This was general guidance for states and not a response to the waiver request.

At this time, NYSED continues to await response to the original waiver requests (USDE has 120 days from submission to act).

“As we continue to see a global pandemic impact our schools and students in every corner of the state, the Board and I are determined to complete this school year in a manner that protects the health and safety of all of New York’s children,” said Chancellor Lester W. Young, Jr. “While we were disappointed by the USDE decision not to grant blanket waivers for state assessments, we are confident that the regulatory amendments acted on today and other assessment-related actions by the Department provide for the flexibility necessary to meet federal requirements while ensuring the well-being of those in our school buildings.”

In addition to canceling certain state tests, the Board of Regents enacted other changes to create flexibility for school districts, including: 

  • Expanded testing administration window for Grades 3-8 ELA (April 19-29) and Math (May 3-14)
  • Assessments will not be administered remotely (school based in-person administration only)
  • Only Session 1 of the ELA and Math assessments are required (Session 2 is optional and East Greenbush CSD will not be administering that section)
  • Session 1 tests have been reduced in length by the removal of the embedded multiple choice field test questions
  • Schools are not expected to bring students into the building to participate in the tests if the students are receiving entirely remote instruction
  • Schools are allowed to administer the tests to students in the hybrid model on the days when students are receiving in-person instruction.

Given the decision by the NYS Board of Regents on assessments, the NYS Association of World Language Administrators has canceled the June 2021 FLACS Checkpoint A and B Assessments in Chinese, French, German, Italian, and Spanish.

The updated Spring 2021 Exam Schedule is listed below.

Spring 2021 Exam Schedule

  • Grade 3-8 ELA
    • A Day Students – Monday, April 19 (Makeup on Thursday, April 22)
    • B Day Students – Tuesday, April 20 (Makeup on Friday, April 23)
    • Full Remote – Wednesday, April 21 (No Makeups)
      • Grades 3-5 at Genet Gym
      • Grades 6-8 at Goff Gym
  • Grades 3-8 Math
    • A Day Students – Monday, May 3 (Makeup on Thursday, May 6)
    • B Day Students – Tuesday, May 4 (Makeup on Friday, May 7)
    • Full Remote – Wednesday, May 5 (No Makeups)
      • Grades 3-5 at Genet Gym
      • Grades 6-8 at Goff Gym
  • Grade 4 Science (Written)
    • A Day Students – Monday, June 7 (No Makeups)
    • B Day Students – Tuesday, June 8  (No Makeups)
    • Full Remote – Wednesday, June 9 (No Makeups)
  • Grade 8 Science (Written)
    • A Day Students – Monday, June 7 (No Makeups)
    • B Day Students – Tuesday, June 8  (No Makeups)
    • Full Remote – Wednesday, June 9 (No Makeups)
  • Regents Exams
    • Algebra I – Wednesday, June 23
    • English Language Arts – Thursday, June 17
    • Living Environment – Tuesday, June 22
    • Physical Setting/Earth Science (Written Test only) – Thursday, June 24

The NYS Education Department previously canceled the June 2020, August 2020 and January 2021 Regents Exams.

Additional testing information and logistics will be shared with families ahead of the exams.