Rye High School Goes 100% Remote for Two Weeks After COVID Cases

Late Friday, the Rye City School District notified families Rye High School will go 100% remote for the next two weeks. The high school had an emergency dismissal earlier on Friday.

The decision to go remote also means all sports practices and contests have been suspended. The current plan is to re-open the high school for in-person learning on Wednesday, October 21st. A final decision will be made in conjunction with the Westchester Department of Health.

The school message also urged residents to pick-up all phone calls from NY State contact tracers (caller ID may read “NYS Contact Tracing” or display a phone number with a 518 area code).

Here is the entire communication:

“Dear RCSD Families,

Today the District learned of a second positive case at Rye High School. After extensive discussions with the Westchester County Department of Health, we made the decision to close the school this afternoon. All sports practices and contests are on pause until further notice. Due to the number of faculty and staff required to quarantine based on the two cases, Rye High School students will be on a fully-remote schedule beginning Tuesday, October 13. We anticipate that the High School will be remote for two weeks and reopen for in-person learning on Wednesday, October 21. We will make a final decision about reopening the school building in conjunction with the DOH.

The District is contacting the students, faculty, and staff who were exposed to the affected individual to notify them and ask them to quarantine. I know this is concerning news, but please respect the privacy rights of the affected individuals during this difficult time. If you did not receive a message, you or your student are not believed to have been exposed at Rye High School.

Persons identified as a contact of an individual who tested positive will receive a call from a contact tracer. Your caller ID may read “NYS Contact Tracing” or display a phone number with a 518 area code. Please answer these calls promptly. Your identity and any information you share will remain confidential. Please provide Contact Tracers with the information they need to protect the wider community.

Please know that we are doing everything in our power to protect the health and safety of our students, faculty, and staff and are working closely with the Department of Health to manage this particular situation.

I wish you and your family good health during these extremely challenging times.

Sincerely,

Eric Byrne, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools”