Sandy Alters Rivertowns School Calendars

Local schools are asking students to come in on days they originally had off to make up for days lost because of Hurricane Sandy, causing interruptions to vacation breaks for some districts.

The storm closed down Irvington, Hastings-on-Hudson and Dobbs Ferry schools for five days from Oct. 29 to Nov. 2. New York State law requires that students be in school for 180 days a year.

Since Dobbs Ferry students came in on Election Day, when students were supposed to be off, they only have to make up two days on Monday, March 25 and Thursday March 28. This requires students to come into school in the middle of spring break where students normally would be off from Monday, March 25 to Friday, March 29. 

“We normally would give consecutive days off however, March 26 is Passover and March 29 is Good Friday,” said Dobbs Ferry Superintendent Dr. Lisa Brady in a letter to parents. 

This leaves Dobbs Ferry’s February winter break in tact and allows the district to use the week of June 24 if additional days off are needed. 

“Let’s hope for a mild winter,” said Brady.

Since Irvington Schools had three snow days already scheduled in its calendar, it only has to make up two school days because of Sandy. The district considered several approaches, including weighing out the complexities and advantages of opening school during mid-winter or spring recess or on Martin Luther King Jr. Day or Memorial Day.

The district decided that it would hold April 1 as a regular school day instead of a conference day, and open school on Wednesday, February 20 through Friday, February 22 during February break. This will allow the district to fulfill its 180 school day requirement and have an additional two emergency closure days.

Main Street School students are required to come in on Friday, June 21—while the last day of classes for the rest of Irvington Schools in on Thursday, June 20—since the school was closed on Nov. 16 because of a broken pipe. Irvington plans to develop a plan for making up for closure days that can’t be accommodated in the calendar, and may build closure days into its calendar.

Hastings-on-Hudson,however, still has one emergency day left in its calendar. If additional days off are needed, students will come in on March 27 or the 28, and the 26 if necessary. 

“If we have an unusual winter and use a great number of snow days, this will be reconsidered accordingly,” said Hastings-on-Hudson Superintendent Dr. Roy Montesano.

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