District Provides Frequent Updates on COVID Cases
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The reports are coming in on almost a daily basis. Suspected and confirmed COVID cases have been reported at Scarsdale High School and at two elementary schools. With each incident the District enacts their confirmed case protocol to determine if contact tracing is necessary, who, if anyone, will need to be quarantined and if school will have to go all virtual.
According to the District’s restart plan, “The District will coordinate with the Westchester County Department of Health and The District Physician to determine the extent of closure needed to contact trace. Additionally, should school based transmission be suspected the District may close for longer periods according to the advice of our District Physician and the Westchester County/State Departments of Health.”
An email from the district dated October 26 notes that in addition to those who are quarantined due to contact with someone in school, other children have also been quarantined after they were exposed to an infected person out of the district. The note says, “Additionally, there have been many quarantines across the District due to contacts with individuals from outside of our school community. The vast majority of these contacts have resulted from independent youth sports organizations. In some cases, we only receive information about these contacts from a few parents and are left to investigate any other students who may have been involved. We ask that you inform your school nurse immediately if you are contacted by an outside sports organization or the Department of Health due to a COVID-19 exposure. It may feel disruptive to quarantine in these situations, but these practices allow our District to remain open for unaffected students and reduce the possibility of spread in our community.”
The cohort plan and hybrid schedule are designed to limit quarantines to 20-30 students per case, but if students were in contact with others in social situations outside school and without masks, they are also required to quarantine.
Though it seems like there are many cases, in actuality there were only 5 positive cases reported in the Scarsdale School District in the last 14 days, according to the NYS Department of Health. Given that there are 5,635 teachers, students and staff in the district, the percentage of positive cases is de minimus.
The latest incident caused all in person learning and athletics to be cancelled at Scarsdale High school for Tuesday afternoon October 27 and Wednesday October 28 along with Halloween costume photos for high school seniors planned for Wednesday.
Here's a brief recap of recent COVID incidents and confirmed cases:
October 27 – a positive case at Scarsdale High School, no additional quarantines required.
October 26 – a positive case at Fox Meadow School. No school closure required “as contacts have been limited by the already imposed quarantine.”
October 23 – a positive case at Scarsdale High School
October 22 – a positive case at Scarsdale High School
October 17 – a positive case for a test administrator for the PSAT at Scarsdale High School requiring 76 students to quarantine for 14 days.
The frequent communications to parents should please those who were initially critical of the district for a lack of transparency. Alerts and counts should also serve to remind residents to wear masks, practice social distancing and remain vigilant about the spread of the virus.
Scarsdale High School to be Closed on October 23 Due to Another Positive Diagnosis
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On October 22, the Scarsdale School community learned of another Covid-19 case in the schools, causing more school closures.
On October 15, Quaker Ridge Elementary School closed for the day when two students reported being symptomatic after exposure to a Covid positive person. Subsequent testing revealed that the students were not positive, and the school re-opened the following day.
Then on Saturday October 17, following a PSAT test at Scarsdale High School, the district learned that an individual who administered the test had tested positive for the virus after proctoring the test in the school’s cafeteria. The 80 people in the room were ordered to quarantine for 14 days by the Westchester County Department of Health.
Now, just five days later, Scarsdale High School will shift to remote learning on Friday October 23 to allow an investigation by the Department of Health. Contact tracing is in process and anyone who has been in close contact with the individual who tested positive on October 22 will also have to quarantine for 14 days.
Here is the email from the district.
Dear Scarsdale Schools Community,
We learned this afternoon that an individual at Scarsdale High School has tested positive for Covid-19. Once we became aware of this, we immediately enacted our Confirmed Case Protocol. As per this protocol, all students and staff members who have been in close contact with the infected individual have been notified and will be in quarantine for 14 days from the point of last exposure. The Department of Health has been notified and has initiated an investigation and the contact tracing process. If you have not been contacted directly and told to quarantine, this means that you are not a close contact and are not directly impacted at this time. For reference, instructions for quarantine can be found here.
As per our protocol, Scarsdale High School will shift to remote learning tomorrow, Friday, October 23, in order to allow the Department of Health to investigate. All morning and afternoon classes in the hybrid schedule will meet virtually tomorrow according to that schedule. All sports and any other in-person activities are canceled for this afternoon (Thursday, October 22) and tomorrow (Friday, October 23). Athletic practices and contests planned for Saturday will continue as scheduled. At this time, we plan to open SHS on a regular, hybrid schedule on Monday as contact tracing should be completed and appropriate staff and students will be quarantined. We will not communicate further this week unless those plans should change or there is significant additional information to share.
Finally, it is important to note that one of our objectives is to determine if this case resulted from the transmission of the virus within the school setting, or from transmission outside the school setting. Doing so will better inform our decision-making process and assist us in minimizing the transmission of Covid-19. If you have any questions, please contact your school nurse or building administration.
Sincerely,
Dr. Thomas Hagerman, Superintendent of Schools
Analysis Finds that Scarsdale is Offering the Fewest Hours of Teaching Among Peer Districts
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Though the Scarsdale School District claims to set standards for educational excellence, on one measure it appears that they are falling behind. A group of Scarsdale parents, with children at all grade levels, did some research to compare the number of hours of synchronous learning offered in the Scarsdale Schools to 20 other area districts.
The results were surprising: The group found that of the 20 districts analyzed, Scarsdale has less instructional hours in all age ranges than every other district.
Scarsdale is providing 12 to 14 hours per week for elementary school students and 17 hours a week for students in middle school and high school. At the top of the range are Great Neck North and South with 24 hours of instructional time for elementary school students and 30 hours a week for those in middle and high school. In Westchester, Irvington is offering 22 hours per week for elementary school students and 30 hours for middle and high school students. In Chappaqua, elementary and middle school students attend school for full days on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays, with a half day on Wednesdays.
The Scarsdale School administration defends the schedule saying that limitations on space due to NYS social distancing requirements are to blame for the curtailed school days. However at the elementary level, some districts have employed creative solutions like installing plexiglass shields to permit more children to be in class together.
At the upper levels, other districts are using livestreaming or Google Meet to allow those at home to follow their classes. In Scarsdale, the high school cohorts are split into A and B groups, with the same lesson being taught on alternating days. This means that in many subject areas, only half the curriculum will be covered over the course of the year. Furthermore, Wednesdays have been set aside for teacher planning and professional developent, specials and tutorials. There is no sychronous learning on Wednesdays, cutting llive teaching by another 20%.
As to why Scarsdale is not livestreaming classes, Assistant Superintendent Andrew Patrick explained that teachers are just getting acclimated to the hybrid schedule and reporting that teaching to small cohorts is working. The district is also concerned about requiring too much screen time for students. He also explained that any change to the schedule would require lengthy collective bargaining negotiations with the teachers union (STA).
At a Board of Education meeting on October 5, School Superintendent Dr. Thomas Hagerman responded to the analysis telling parents that it might not paint the complete picture. He said he confers with area superintendents on a daily basis and the information that is written does not reflect what might be happening on the ground. He reports that some of these districts began school later than Scarsdale and have had to close for a day or two due to COVID cases. In addition, districts are having trouble staffing in-person classes and teachers are often absent.
Here is a copy of the parents’ letter that was sent to the administration and the Board of Education just prior to the October 5 meeting.
Dear Board and Administration,
I am attaching a chart comparing Scarsdale School District’s instructional time to other peer districts. This chart was produced by a group of parents who reached out to local schools to collect information about their hybrid plans, with a focus on ‘synchronous’ learning time. Notes were taken and included to flush out some details, hours are all estimates. It is intended as a snapshot only.
We do not draw conclusions, nor do we have recommendations for educational plans based on this small sliver of information.
But we notice two things that we wish to share:
1) Of the 20 other districts reviewed, Scarsdale has less instructional time in all age ranges than every other district. We are at the bottom.
2) Most/all other districts use some sort of live-streaming technology for the upper grades to support learning during this crisis with most live-streaming into the classroom.
Anecdotally, there are a number of other districts who have already made adjustments to plans, keeping the promise of a dynamic program. With so much uncertainty on the horizon, this is an important aspect of life today and we want to support our district to be flexible to improvement for student learning.
We realize that COVID-19 could require us to quickly pivot to all remote at any time, so while numbers are still on the low side should we be attentive to options now for more instruction?
We are sharing this info with others because we find parents and community members like to make up their own minds, review data for themselves.
Thank you so much in advance for taking the time to review this analysis.
Best,
Lisa Gans
Diane Greenwald
Debbie Hochberg
Elizabeth Hoexter
Sarah Hopkins
Michael Kahan
Tina Lin
Mimi Rocah
Stacey Schutzer
Michelle Sterling
Mauri Zemachson
Quaker Ridge Elementary Goes All Virtual After Two Students Are Reported to be Symptomatic
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(Updated at 2:25 PM) Quaker Ridge Elementary School in Scarsdale was closed on Thursday October 15 and moved to virtual learning after two students, who were previously quarantined, began experiencing mild symptoms. According to Eric Rauschenbach, Assistant Superintendent for Special Education and Student Services, “There are a number of staff and students on quarantine because of contact outside of school to a (COVID) positive person.” Apparently two of these students are experience symptoms and will be tested.
The school advised families who may have had direct contact with the two students via an email that was sent to parents with a child in one of the children’s classes or on the same school bus.
In a post on Facebook Alison Singer, Vice President of the Board of Education, said “If the students test positive, the Department of Health will commence contact tracing. Cohorting is a risk-mitigation strategy; it facilitates contract tracing.”
However, by 2:25 pm, the district informed parents that the two students had tested negative and school would resume the following day.
The email said, "Dear Families, As you know, this morning Quaker Ridge School went to a remote schedule due to students on quarantine experiencing symptoms. We have received confirmation that the students have tested negative (through a Rapid PCR test) for COVID-19. This is extremely happy news to us and to the family. I would like to thank them for the timeliness of their information and taking the health and safety of the community seriously! As prescribed by NYS guidance the family will continue the 14 day quarantine and we look forward to welcoming them back once that is completed."
Parents are questioning why the entire school needed to be closed, given that students are attending school in two cohorts, which should allow one cohort to be quarantined with the other still attending school. However, if the students were exposed to the COVID positive person at an after-school program with mixed cohorts, this strategy might not be effective.
Here is the first notification from the district:
Good Morning,
Early this morning, the District received information that two students currently in quarantine at Quaker Ridge School have woken up with mild symptoms. They are awaiting test results. In consultation with our District Physician, we have decided to place the Quaker Ridge School on remote instruction for Thursday, October 15th out of an abundance of caution. We expect to receive confirmation of COVID test results today and will communicate with the community about needed follow up. We apologize for the late notice, however, the District received this information this morning and needed to make decisions immediately.
Today, the District will work with the family, our school physician, and the Department of Health to confirm test results and plan next steps. This morning the school will contact the families who may have been in contact with the students so they can take precautionary steps while awaiting confirmation of the test results. Should test results come back positive the District will work with the Department of Health to immediately contact trace and inform affected families.
We thank the community for its continued willingness to provide the District with timely information in order to keep our community safe and healthy.
Eric K. Rauschenbach
Assistant Superintendent of Special Education and Student Services
Scarsdale Public Schools
Legionella Bacteria Found in Middle School and Quaker Ridge Water Systems
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As if COVID did not pose enough of a challenge to the reopening of the Scarsdale Schools, now the district has announced that legionella bacteria, the cause of Legionnaires’ disease, has been found in the water at Scarsdale Middle School and the Quaker Ridge School. An email from the district says, “The bacteria can cause a form of pneumonia that can be severe. While found in drinking water, the disease may result by breathing in or aspirating small water droplets containing a pathogenic type of legionella bacteria.”
Testing at the school was conducted on September 4, but results were not reported until September 14. You can see the test results here: As a result, the district covered all water fountains and drinking stations with the exception of water stations that include UV filtration, that kills the pathogens. They will supply water bottles for drinking at both schools, and plan to replace all water fountains with UV filtration stations. According to an email from School Superintendent Dr. Thomas Hagerman, “District Food Services in the two affected schools will suspend the use of kitchen sinks at for food preparation until mitigation is complete.” It’s not clear how they can prepare food without water.
In order to eradicate the bacteria, the district plans to disinfect the system, flush the lines and retest. This work will be done at all seven schools.
According to Scarsdale resident and physician Darlene Lefrancois, “It is unfortunately Legionella pneumophilia, a highly pathologic strain, and per reports it was at two out of four sources at Quaker Ridge and five out of six at the Middle School, representing an extensive degree of small to moderate colonization.”
She continued, “I am glad to see they are planning on regular retesting going forward, also addressed in the Sept 17th briefing. I am dismayed they didn't deal with this issue before reopening the schools. Nobody needed this and it was foreseeable. As I had guessed I think the COVID closures of school in March and low flow of the water is a contributor. Given this testing was done as part of the reopening plan it's unfortunate this was not dealt with prior to actual reopening schools for instruction.”
Providing some background on the bacteria, LeFrancois said, “We have unfortunately had a number of cluster outbreaks of this disease during my tenure working as a physician in the Bronx. While there are a couple of select classes of antibiotics that can treat the disease (these do not include the B-lactam class e.g. penicillin), they are certainly not 100% effective. Mortality numbers overall are as high or even higher than for COVID-19. Immediate source control is essential to eliminate the risk and until that is achieved anyone in attendance or working at the school may be at risk of acquiring this serious infection from various water sources. Thankfully, as the briefing points out, there is no person to person spread. As an important aside, the clinical presentation can be similar to that of a typical pneumonia but is very often atypical (hence why Legionella pneumonia is considered an "atypical pneumonia"). Specifically, gastrointestinal symptoms (e.g diarrhea, vomiting) are very common and may be the predominant symptom at presentation. The community should be made aware of what to look for.”
An August 27, 2020 article in the NY Times alerted the public to the risk of legionella in schools that were shutdown since March. A district in Ohio found the bacteria in five of their schools and it was detected in four schools in a district in Pennsylvania.
In order to reopen and comply with safety procedures to mitigate the risk of COVID, the Scarsdale Schools had to take many measures to alter the configuration of classrooms, install hand sanitizers and signage, purchase PPE and draft rules, regulations and procedures for to govern school attendance. Facilities Director John Trenholm retired in July which may have further stressed the administration. Testing for legionella is not part of the district’s usual protocol. In an email to parents dated September 16, 2020 Dr. Hagerman explained, “Testing for legionella is not a requirement for schools and mitigation measures are not regulated. However, we decided to add this testing as part of our broader building restart plan based on the CDC recommendations outlined in the Guidance for Reopening Buildings After Prolonged Shutdown or Reduced Operation. Going forward, we will engage in regular legionella testing as part of our comprehensive environmental testing plan.”
The CDC report warns about the risk of both mold and legionella in buildings that have been shutdown. It opens as follows:
“The temporary shutdown or reduced operation of a building and reductions in normal water use can create hazards for returning occupants. Two potential microbial hazards that should be considered prior to reopening after a period of building inactivity are mold and Legionella (the cause of Legionnaires’ disease). For mold, a “prolonged period” may be days, weeks, or months depending upon building-specific factors, season, and weather variables. For Legionella, a “prolonged period” may be weeks or months depending on plumbing-specific factors, disinfectant residuals, water heater temperature set points, water usage patterns, and preexisting Legionella colonization.”
We’re not sure if the district conducted air quality reports to test for the presence of mold before the opening of school. For now, we don’t see these results posted on the district website, but do know that the district committed to annual testing of both air and water quality. Here is the link to the facilities page on the district website.
Regarding legionella, in a memo to parents dated September 15, Dr. Hagerman said, “We wish this communication wasn’t regarding yet another challenge to overcome, but we would rather know and be able to complete a course of mitigation than the alternative. These are challenging times indeed, and we thank you for your support as we navigate this unusual school year.”
