The Lynbrook Board of Education held a work session meeting at Lynbrook High School on July 21. The community was invited to watch the meeting through a livestream on the district’s website.

Board President William Belmont provided the community with a timeline for the district’s reopening plans. Under the guidance of New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the district will submit their plans to the state on July 31. The governor will then decide on Aug. 7 how he will address those plans and the board will meet on Aug. 12 to present the plan to the community. This meeting will be held in the Lynbrook High School gymnasium and be livestreamed. Due to state regulations on large gatherings, some residents will be able to attend the meeting. This will be on a first-come, first-serve basis. Prior to the meeting, the presentation will be posted to the district website, lynbrookschools.org, to give community members a closer look at what to expect in the fall.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Melissa Burak shared further details regarding reopening. “There are many requirements and we, in Lynbrook, are doing our best to provide a safe environment for all staff and students,” she said.

She detailed different models that the district is reviewing. For example, on the elementary K-5 level, introducing a gold model and green model. The gold model will represent in-person instruction, every day. The green model will be the remote model for students who need to remain at home. At this time, the remote or green model, will involve a live, digital interactive experience with a certified teacher.

Due to the amount of movement that takes place all day at the secondary level, the models that the district is looking to implement for grades 6-12 will look different than the primary level. The green model will be for those who need to remain at home and will involve a live, digital synchronous experience. The blue model will allow for students to attend school in-person, every other day with the alternating day consisting of the live, digital synchronous learning.

The district is still exploring the logistics about classroom and large space utilization in all buildings. Health and safety protocols are being finalized, along with scheduling and the delivery of courses in the school buildings. Once the district’s plan is submitted to the state, families will be asked to submit a letter of intent indicating which model they would like. Families can change their decision at a certain point during the school year.

In addition, Dr. Burak shared the decisions that have already been made to properly clean and disinfect the buildings for the safe return of students. This includes:

• Postponing the adult education program until the spring semester.

• Postponing the before school intramural program until November at which time, the district will revisit the status of the public health situation.

• Requiring PPE for all when social distancing is not feasible. At the very least, this means any movement in the building between classes, in stairwells, hallways and during staff-student meetings, face masks must be worn.

• The elementary RAS program operating under the Department of Health guidelines; however, students must remain in their home school. This means that kindergarten students will remain at the Kindergarten Center this year rather than be bussed to another elementary school to be with siblings. The district understands that a staggered pick up time must be arranged for families that need to pick up in two locations.

• Delaying the fall sports season (at this time) until Sept. 21 as per the state athletics association.

The community is encouraged to visit the district’s Reopening Plan page at www.lynbrookschools.org/district/reopening_plan as information will be forthcoming.