East Meadow
HERALD Student joins national program
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university presidents & faculty on the la A longtime RCI test on going back to school
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Vol. 20 No. 33
Higher Education & COVID-19 Hear from college &
E.M. schools prepare for fall District releases instruction plan, but scheduling is still up in the air By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com
Christina Daly/Herald
Hundreds still without power A utility pole snapped in half on Everett Place in East Meadow during Tropical Storm Isaias on Aug. 4. As of Tuesday, 943 East Meadow residents remained without power. Story, more photos, Page 10.
Dealing with psychological toll of the coronavirus pandemic By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com
The coronavirus pandemic’s impact on mental health can be seen in the increase in calls to the Bellmore-based Long Island Crisis Center. Roughly 80 percent of those who call specifically mention Covid-19, according to Executive Director Theresa Buhse. Callers have described depressive episodes resulting from self-isolation, anxiety because of possible
Seeking help If you or a loved one is experiencing a crisis, you can call the Long Island Crisis Center’s hotline, (516) 679-1111. exposure to the virus and an inability to cope that moved them to join online Alcoholics Anonymous meetings or visit therapists
in person. “We have several different hotlines, and have been answering them around the clock,” Buhse said. “We haven’t missed a beat when it comes to answering the calls.” Marcella Pizzo, a mental health counselor with a private practice in East Meadow, said she has seen an increase in the number of patients since March, with Continued on page 3
The East Meadow School District will be permitted to reopen next month, along with districts across the state, as announced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Aug. 7. Cuomo said he based his decision on low infection rates recorded in every region. The State Education Department is leaving the specifics of how to reopen New York’s 749 school districts to the districts themselves. They are empowered to make decisions about what inperson learning will look like, how much remote learning will be offered and how to implement safety protocols. To develop a plan to reopen, the East Meadow district formed a School Reopening Committee that included dozens of administrators, teachers, parents, nurses and police officers. Administrators also sent a survey to district parents, asking them about their concerns about and hopes for reopening. But Superintendent Kenneth Card Jr. said that the district had not been given adequate guidelines from the state, and that making a plan felt like “flying a plane in the dark.” The district finalized its plan
and posted it on its website on Aug. 7, shortly after Cuomo’s announcement. “When the 2020-2021 school year begins, on-campus school will look much different than previous years,” the introduction to the 44-page plan begins. Before students return to classes in person, staff members will be trained in all safety measures through an online learning platform called the Global Compliance Network. Students will receive similar training in person during the first week of school from their teachers and school nurses. Students will be required to have wear masks all day, except when eating lunch and during periodic “mask breaks.” They will have their temperature taken each day and asked other questions about their health, and will be sent home if they have a temperature higher than 100 degrees. If a staff member or student comes within six feet of someone with Covid-19, he or she must tell a district official, who will report the information to the State Department of Health. The staff member or student will not be permitted on school property until OK’d by the health departContinued on page 3