Education

As school staff, including nurses, therapists, and teachers, lined up to be vaccinated this week, school districts continued to grapple with plans to conduct Covid-19 testing all while trying to not let the virus upend children’s education.

That the leaking roof and the aging kindergarten playground need to be replaced at the Springs School is not new news, but the district's architects on Monday offered updated cost estimates for the two projects, which are slated to start at the end of June.

Several activities for children are coming up.

The months since the pandemic began have seen "almost a 100 percent increase in the student population of the Amagansett School," according to Seth Turner, superintendent of the Amagansett School District.

For Guild Hall's 90th anniversary and the centennial of the Village of East Hampton, the 2021 Student Art Festival at Guild Hall will celebrate this area's history and look to an imagined future.

The East Hampton School District will restrict classes to remote-only at the John M. Marshall Elementary School starting Friday, and will extend this week’s virtual instruction at the middle and high schools through next week.

The Sag Harbor School District on Monday unveiled a preliminary plan to begin administering Covid-19 tests to its students and staff members within the next two weeks.

With East Hampton High School reporting 13 active Covid-19 cases this week and the middle school reporting another nine among staff and students, the two schools will switch to fully remote classes next week, the district announced Friday afternoon.

For a new, five-week workshop, Guild Hall has partnered with Loot, a Brooklyn comic book store that holds classes for kids.

Project Most will hold several in-person activities each week in January, focusing on science, art, fitness, and language, for kids in different age groups.

Almost all of Gansett Meadow's 37 units are now occupied, and the actual number of new Amagansett students is lining up with the East Hampton Housing Authority's original projections.

Federal lawmakers have awarded a five-year, $125,000 grant to the group SAFE in Sag Harbor to help combat substance abuse among young people, Representative Lee Zeldin announced Tuesday.

High school students interested in veterinary medicine have the opportunity to attend a Zoom career exploration program hosted by Cornell Cooperative Extension Suffolk County Farm and Education Center.

Pre-registration at ccesuffolk.org and registration at suffolkcountyfarm.campbrainregistration.com will be open until the lecture series begins. The online classes are on Thursday evenings, 7 to 8:45 p.m., Feb. 25 to March 25. The registration fee is $100.

Animal-themed activities, ugly sweaters, dance classes, and a countdown to "Noon Year's Eve" on New Year's Eve.

For Carolyn Fitzgerald, a lifelong resident of East Hampton and a 30-year employee of the East Hampton School District, working in the school cafeteria every weekday from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. was a way to take her mind off the harsh realities of the Covid-19 pandemic.

John Daniels, the head custodian at the Bridgehampton School, is no stranger to the concept of clean. Forty years in the job not only means he knows how to take care of maintenance, but he also knows for whom he is doing it.

"I call them my babies. I get to see them all the way from pre-K to graduation," he said the other day.

When the Eleanor Whitmore Early Childhood Center got a call from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's office asking if it could open its doors to provide free care to the children of essential workers, the staff made it happen.

When you know his background, it's easy to understand why Michael Donovan came to the aid of thousands of schoolchildren by donating Chromebook computers for them to do remote schooling during the pandemic.

Being a school nurse has always been a mixture of care, compassion, and common sense. Now, you can add "contact tracing" to that list.

Few groups had their worlds upended during the pandemic as much as students and teachers. Put to the test, many teachers became students of new technologies and rose to meet the challenges that distance learning presented.

As a substitute teacher shortage continues to plague school districts on Long Island, the Sag Harbor School District on Monday hired five more substitutes, and continues to seek more candidates.

Four out of five East Hampton Middle School students agree: Going to school during the Covid-19 pandemic is tougher than it was before. Also, a disclaimer: In no way is that a scientific statistic, as the sample size was pretty limited, but the point is still accurate, according to the students themselves.

"There were more things to do that we can't do now," Emma Hand, a sixth grader, recalled during a Google Meet interview last week. "It's a little bit harder, but at least we get to go to school."

A leaky roof over the junior high wing at the Springs School was an unforeseen addition to the construction projects ahead, brought to the attention of Michael Henery, the school business administrator, by recent weather, and discussed at Monday's school board work session.

Family art activities, children's museum hours, wildlife walks, and more options for kids this week.

In partnership with the Suffolk County Department of Health Services, the East Hampton School District has continued to test its students and staff members for Covid-19, turning up zero positive cases out of what are now 290 tests.

The East Hampton School District on Tuesday awarded contracts to construction companies for the new bus depot the district is going to build at the former scavenger waste property on Springs-Fireplace Road.

After the administration put together a survey about what Spirit Day themes the children would like to see in school next week, students cast their votes.

The New York State Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance has honored four South Fork high school seniors for their athletic prowess and leadership in physical education and health classes, as well as their academic achievements and outstanding character.

Compared to most people, Jake Lorefice was one New York University music technology master's degree more prepared to roll with the pandemic's punches and modify the Montauk School's music program, setting his sixth graders up for podcasting success. 

The Parrish Art Museum blazed a trail this year in education, with courses for teachers that will boost the teaching of art across the board. For its efforts, the Water Mill museum has been recognized by the New York State Art Teachers Association.

During a virtual ceremony at the agency's This Is Art 2020 conference on Nov. 20, the Parrish received the association's Special Citation Business/Institute Award.