Wallkill Valley schools resume hybrid instruction as state eases some quarantine timelines

The Wallkill Valley School Districts — Hardyston, Wallkill Valley, Franklin, Ogdensburg, and Hamburg — restarted hybrid instruction, in-person and virtual, on Monday, Jan. 11, as the state offered new guidance easing quarantine timelines.

Hardyston Superintendent Mike Ryder and other principals and superintendents met with representatives from the New Jersey Board of Health on Jan. 8 to get updates on Covid-19 and safety protocols in the district. Ryder said they discussed new New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) guidelines, released on Jan. 6, that offer the option of shorter quarantines, even while continuing to urge longer periods of exclusion.

“The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) released guidance with options to shorten the quarantine time period following exposure to a confirmed positive case,” says a report from the state health department. “While the CDC and NJDOH continue to endorse 14 days as the preferred quarantine period and thus the preferred school exclusion period, it is recognized that any quarantine shorter than 14 days balances reduced burden against a small possibility of spreading the virus.”

The report also said that in school settings, people in close contact with staff or students with Covid-19 symptoms may be considered for a reduced exclusion period based on regional risk levels:

● High (orange) — Exposed close contacts should be excluded from school for 14 days.

● Moderate or low (yellow or green) — Exposed close contacts should be excluded from school for 10 days, or 7 days with negative test results collected at 5 to 7 days.

The report also says that “medically complex or other high-risk individuals,” and those who work closely with them, should be excluded from campus for 14 days throughout all risk levels.

The 14-day exclusion is recommended for schools that offer in-person learning despite very high community transmission and the red or orange regional risk levels, according to the report.

The report contained another change: a student who left school in December with Covid-19 symptoms was able to return to school only if their test was negative, or if they received an alternate diagnosis from their doctor. As of Jan. 8, a student may return only with a negative Covid-19 test result.

Ryder said the pre-schools, kindergarten through grade 8, will participate in synchronized teaching. This means teachers will instruct in-person students and virtual-learning students at the same time. The arrangement is as follows:

● Hardyston middle school and the Hardyston grammar school will teach Cohort Blue in-person on Monday and Tuesday, while Cohort Gold logs on remotely from home.

● Cohort Gold will be in-person on Thursday and Friday, while Cohort Blue logs on remotely from home.

● Everyone is taught remotely on Wednesdays.

● Special needs students are attending school four days a week for extra support.

Additional information may be found on the New Jersey Department of Health website (state.nj.us).