Hicksville Schools Go Remote Amidst COVID Surge
HICKSVILLE, NY — Hicksville schools are starting 2022 with a week of remote learning due to the coronavirus, the district told parents over the weekend.
According to the district, the number of both students and staff that have reported coronavirus infections means that schools cannot be safely opened for in-person instruction. Instead, all classes will be held remotely for the week of Jan. 3-7.
"Just like many of you, our staff and their families have been negatively impacted by this pandemic and we are working to provide services to all our students to the best of our ability through an unprecedented pandemic," Superintendent Marianne Litzman wrote in a letter to families.
The district will still be providing meals for students during the week of remote instruction. Breakfast and lunch will be available as grab-and-go meals from the middle school drive-thru, located on Second Street. Meals will be available from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
In addition, the district will soon be providing COVID-19 at-home testing kits, which it received from the state, to families.
"These test kits will be distributed by our school district to parents who wish to use them at home," Litzman wrote. "Information regarding parent pick up will be sent soon."
Hicksville was not the only school district to switch to remote learning this week. The Freeport, Westbury and Wyandanch school districts also made the same change, and Baldwin and Long Beach districts moved some classes online.
According to the state, Long Island's seven-day average positivity rate was nearly 25 percent on Sunday. There were 9,388 positive cases confirmed on Long Island on Sunday, officials said — the second-highest number in the state. Only New York City had more cases.
"Let's celebrate the first day of school in 2022 by ensuring we are taking the proper precautions to keep them open through the rest of the year," Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement. "We know how to overcome this winter surge: get the vaccine, get the booster, mask up, get tested and stay home if you're feeling sick. If we don't use these tools, many more in our communities will get sick."
This article originally appeared on the Hicksville Patch
