Coronavirus: 3 New Rochelle Schools Within Containment Area

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — The state-imposed containment area in New Rochelle, which is in response to the outbreak of the new coronavirus, will affect three of the city's public schools. Superintendent Dr. Laura Feijóo issued a statement Tuesday that New Rochelle High School, Albert Leonard Middle School and William B. Ward Elementary School will close from Wednesday, March 11 through Wednesday March 25.

The schools fall within a 1-mile radius of Young Israel of New Rochelle, which is considered the epicenter of the new coronavirus outbreak. The number of students affected by the closing is 5,508, Feijóo said, which is roughly half the district's total number of students.

District officials anticipate students will return to school Thursday, March 26.

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There are now 173 confirmed cases of COVID-19, as the virus is known, in New York — up 31 from Monday — and the cluster of cases in New Rochelle is the largest in the country. There are 108 cases in Westchester County, up 10 from Monday.

Facilities including schools and houses of worship in the 1-mile radius around Young Israel will close for two weeks. The list of facilities in the containment area is being created in collaboration with the Westchester County Executive and the mayor of New Rochelle, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said at a news conference Tuesday.

"We believe students are safest in schools and are eager to reopen as soon as possible," Feijóo said. "It is inevitable that one of our students or staff will contract the virus. What is in our control is to be ready, calm, decisive and responsive to any and all circumstances which may arise."

She said that students, while at home, should remember to not congregate unnecessarily, but to work on educational materials provided to them.

Middle and high school students who do not have access to computers at home should email the district here. The district will work to distribute and deliver the laptops, which must be returned when students go back to school.

"We must make these two weeks count instructionally and ensure students are learning and engaged while we deal with this worldwide crisis," Feijóo said.

Students will receive targeted instructional guidance which will be aligned horizontally district-wide, she said. Information will be emailed to parents pertaining with their children's academic progress over the next two weeks.

Feijóo said the district has advocated for help from the governor's office to aid students who depend on food from the district.

"We are committed to working with state officials to ensure that the state is ready to support our students every day we are closed beginning tomorrow," she said, adding the district cannot handle it alone.

New Rochelle city officials have not learned yet where the state's National Guard will be stationed, Mayor Noam Bramson said. The state said the guard would be deployed in the containment area to help clean surfaces and distribute food.

"We will of course coordinate with the National Guard to ensure they will be able to support our community in our time of need," Bramson told Patch.

Among the priorities, he listed, "delivery of meals, important for children who rely on school breakfasts, cleaning, and other logistical challenges we cannot even anticipate."

SEE ALSO:

• Coronavirus: 1-Mile Containment Area Planned In New Rochelle
• New Rochelle City Hall: Dealing With Coronavirus Containment Zone
• Iona College In New Rochelle Beginning Spring Break Early
• Coronavirus: Expert Offers Common-Sense Reasons Not To Panic
• Coronavirus: Scarsdale Closes School District; Faculty Member Ill
• Suffolk's 1st Coronavirus Patient An Employee At Popular Brewery
• To Avoid Coronavirus, Americans Over 60 Should Hunker Down: CDC

With additional reported by Lanning Taliaferro/Patch.