Updated Mask Guidance 7-30

Dear Tiger Family:  

It was wonderful to meet so many families out supporting our STEAM Summer Enrichment students Thursday, as they showed off all the amazing work they’ve completed over the past three weeks. It was a fantastic event and I am grateful for the collaborative efforts of our students, families, instructors, and staff for providing not only that event but the entire program for our students. If you missed any part of it, check out the gallery on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

The one question I heard from many parents yesterday was “What’s the first day of school going to look like?” While we don’t have a clear picture of what New York State is going to require of us, we have been watching the COVID-19 hospitalization rates climbing in our neighboring counties.

We are working hard to return to full five days a week classes. But in order to meet that goal safely, we may require students and staff to wear masks again, as we did last year. We will make a final decision on masking in schools that balances our goal of 100 percent of students in school, with our continued commitment to keep our students and staff members safe.

We will continue to recommend students wear a mask, but not require one for now. Masks are required at all times onboard school vehicles and buses. But that policy could change quickly as the conditions in Washington County continue to develop.

We will continue to update our school community as we get closer to the start of school. We will post any changes to our masking policies to our website. We can each do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19 by making sure everyone ages 12 and up gets their COVID-19 vaccination. You can find a vaccine site on New York State’s Department of Health website.

Sincerely,

Dan Ward, Hudson Falls CSD Superintendent