NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — For months, school districts have been awaiting guidance from New York state on opening plans for the upcoming school year.
They still don't have it.
But, they are getting some details from the state Education Department on the upcoming year.
In a memo to school districts, Dr. Betty Rosa, the state Education Commissioner says "the best the Department can offer to school districts when it comes to health-related preparations for September is that CDC guidelines should be the basis [...]," until further information comes from the state.
Guidance from the CDC recommends indoor masking for everyone, regardless of vaccination status -- a recommendation on 3 feet of distancing and in-person learning if at all possible.
"It's developmentally critical that every child be in school in-person, every single day, so I think that's the most important takeaway that I take from these documents," said Michael Cornell, the superintendent of Hamburg Central Schools.
The commissioner goes onto say that the Education Department won't require schools that are open for full in-person learning to provide virtual learning, but that districts can offer remote learning if it makes sense for them.
Rosa also says that the department has suggested that state guidance consider 'local discretion' on masks and physical distancing.
"And, when I read that to be is that if this was the guidance for September we would strongly recommend masking indoors we would have masks on buses, but we would have kids in school and we would accept a parent or a child who doesn't want to wear a mask," said Mark Laurrie, Superintendent of Niagara Falls City Schools.
Some local school leaders have said summer school guidance -- which says masks are optional -- should remain to start the school year -- since there have been no COVID-19 outbreaks in local schools.
"There's an experience that we can point to right now, happening in schools across Western New York with respect to in-person learning and mask optional environments without physical distancing requirements you've got probably 10-20,000 students learning every day," Cornell said.
Buffalo Schools says that they plan on continuing to mandate masks.
"We will have to continually re-evaluate things as we move to the fall I'm aware that there are no changes in our plans to have full reopening, but we had also decided that we are not going to yet relax masking in Buffalo Public Schools," said Dr. Dennis Kuo, medical adviser for Buffalo Schools, "I think local discretion is very important from a regional standpoint, the cases may be different from here versus New York City, as we know, they could also be very different between here and the North Country."
But, whether state health officials and the Governor's Office support what the state education department says that remains to be seen.
The education commissioner says her department has submitted a number of questions to the governor's office on health and safety guidance for the upcoming school year.
On Wednesday, the state Health Department issued this statement: "The latest announcement from the CDC reinforces the fact that public health metrics are constantly changing, and it is difficult to predict what will be most effective for schools this far in advance. New York State continues to review the new CDC guidance and daily data outcomes, communicate with education stakeholders across the State and will ultimately make our recommendations for the fall based on what is in the best interest of public health, particularly when it comes to children."