Coronavirus: Carmel High School Goes Remote For The Rest Of 2021

Lanning Taliaferro
Updated ·3 min read

CARMEL, NY — Carmel High School, which just won its first state football championship, has closed classrooms and begun operating remotely before going on holiday break until the start of 2022.

"Over the last week, Carmel High School has seen a sizeable increase in the number of COVID-19 cases in our local community and subsequently among students and staff at Carmel High School," Superintendent Mary-Margaret Zehr and Principal Lauren Santabarbara wrote.

They said they were coordinating with the Putnam County Department of Health to complete contact tracing and contact everyone affected by the positive cases.

"We have worked hard to do all that we can to keep our schools open and safe for our students and staff. However, increases in positive cases among students and staff, close contact quarantines, and staffing shortages have become a challenge at Carmel High School this week," they wrote. "Currently, no other building in our district is experiencing this same level of issues, but we will continue to monitor the situation."

Since Sept. 1, there have been 167 positive cases in the district — 81 of them since Dec. 2, and 70 of those since Thursday, according to the district's report to the state health department.

Across Putnam County, positive cases have been climbing since October.

(New York State Health Department)
(New York State Health Department)

The decision comes three days after a holiday vaxx-or-mask mandate went into effect across New York state because of the post-Thanksgiving surge that Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell said she would not enforce. SEE: NY Holiday Vaxx-or-Mask Mandate: 4 HV County Execs Won't Enforce

With the shift to remote learning:

  • Student Devices for Remote Learning: If a student did not pick up a school-issued device when they were offered at the beginning of the school year, devices for remote learning were be available for pick-up on Thursday at the school.

  • Remote Learning Schedule: The remote-learning format will follow the regular bell schedule for the building. Teachers will communicate links for classes through email or Teams.

  • Grab-and-Go Food Distribution: Grab-and-Go offsite meals will be provided for Carmel High School students who require it while the school is operating in a remote-learning format. Bulk meals for multiple days will be available for pick-up on Monday at the Carmel High School cafeteria between the hours of 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Parents are responsible for alerting staff of any food allergies and must do so at the distribution site.

  • Athletics will continue in person, and officials will continue to monitor each athletic team. We encourage all spectators to tune in remotely to livestreams of our games.

  • Extracurricular Clubs: Clubs will operate remotely during the remote-learning format.

  • Social-Emotional Support: All mandated counseling and appointments will occur remotely. Any students in need of additional support should reach out to their counselor or grade-level administrator.

"We recognize that time in the classroom is important for student learning, but the safety of our students, staff and community is also a top priority," Zehr and Santabarbara wrote. "Our teachers and staff will continue to work hard to ensure that the remote learning environment will still provide our high school students with the quality education you expect from our District."

The move to remote learning includes students in special programs such as ENL, BOCES programs, PACE and Bridge.

"As a reminder, we ask our entire District community to remain vigilant, self-quarantine if exposed, and consult a medical professional for advice when needed," they said.

The holiday break for students will take place Dec. 24 – 31, as scheduled. The plan is to resume in-person learning for high school students on Jan. 3.

This article originally appeared on the Southeast-Brewster Patch