Syracuse, N.Y. -- Most private school students in Central New York will return to a nearly normal experience this fall: In-person school all day for five days a week.
The 22 Catholic schools throughout the region, Manlius Pebble Hill and the Syracuse Hebrew Day School all plan to offer full-day, in-person education.
William Crist, the superintendent of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse schools, said the diocese schools all have enough space and staff to accommodate students for full school days when they reopen in the fall.
“We believe that based on school sizes and enrollment, currently, we can go back into 5-day-a-week, in-person school setting,” Crist said. The diocese schools have an average class size of 13.
Each school will make its own choices and come up with its own plan, but Crist said he expects all will offer a full week of school. Schools also will be coming up with hybrid plans and fully-online plans in case there is a spike in Covid-19 cases and for families who aren’t comfortable sending students back full-time.
The diocese has 11 schools in Onondaga County, including two 7-12 schools: Bishop Grimes and Bishop Ludden. Elementary school averages $5,000 a year; 7-12 is $7,000.
Christian Brothers Academy is separate from the Roman Catholic Diocese and does not plan to announce its decision on school reopening until later this week.
Syracuse Hebrew Day School also will be having kids come back to school all day, five days a week, said the school’s director Laura Levine. Right now, that school has 34 students and class sizes are capped at 10, but they have the room and resources to expand enrollment, she said.
Manlius Pebble Hill, too, plans to bring students back for in-person learning five days a week. That school has 320 students in pre-K through 12th grade. Tuition there ranges from $9,500 for lower grades to more than $24,000 for high school.
The private school plans are in stark contrast to the choice that nearly all of the larger districts in the region are making. Most are going with a hybrid option because they do not have the space or the resources to open their doors to every student every day.
Some large public districts will allow each student to come to school a few days each week. Others are keeping entire grades home. In the Syracuse City School District, all of the high school students will be home, learning online, through January.
Nationally, the same trend is playing out. Public schools are struggling to find the money and space to reopen to everyone safely while private schools, with fewer students and often more resources, are able to offer an experience that is close to normal.
Syracuse’s Catholic schools had been struggling for enrollment in years’ past. But that may change this year. Crist said he’d heard from some new parents already and expects to hear from more as public school plans are released.
He said most diocese schools still have the space to take new students. And about 20 percent of the families have said they are not ready to send their students back for in-person learning, which could open additional spots, Crist said.
Syracuse Hebrew Day School also has room to add more students, Levine said. She said she can keep the class sizes at 10 students and increase enrollment 20 percent or more.
“I think we’re in a good position to conduct business as usual,” Levine said. She said she’s been getting calls from parents interested in enrolling children who had been previously attending public school. The cost there is $12,100 for the first child in a family, $9,400 for each sibling. Levine said the school offers financial aid.
Private schools have to follow the same rules as public ones when it comes to health and safety. In most situations students and teachers will wear masks and be socially distanced in the classrooms. And students will be broken into small, cohort groups that stay together, similar to what most public schools are planning.
Crist said the Catholic schools depend on the public schools for transportation, which could be a problem in some areas. Schools are encouraging parents to drive their kids when possible and to set up carpools, if possible.
Private schools are generally not staffed by unionized teachers, while public schools are. NYSUT, which represents more than 500,000 teachers across the state, has demanded that everyone wear masks and be socially distanced in classrooms, even though the state guidelines appear to require one or the other, not both.
Some Western New York districts had their plans set for less than six feet between students, who would wear masks, when the union raised concerns. The districts changed their plans.
The 700 districts across the state have until Friday to turn in their back-to-school plans.
Private and religious schools have to turn in their health plans Friday, but have until Aug. 7 to complete their full plans.
Earlier this month, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo set Covid-19 thresholds hold opening and closing schools. To open, the infection rate must be under 5 percent. If a region’s rate goes above 9 percent, the state will close the schools.
While Cuomo set the cutoffs for opening and closing, he did not announce whether schools would open. That decision is expected next week.
Marnie Eisenstadt is a reporter who writes about people and public affairs in Central New York. Have an idea or question? Contact her anytime: email | twitter | Facebook | 315-470-2246
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Catholic, private schools in Central NY expect to bring all students back into classrooms every day - syracuse.com
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