Dear Families,
As we are just over six weeks away from the beginning of the 2021-22 academic year, the Wynantskill Union Free School District, along with districts statewide, is awaiting updated guidance on the reopening of schools from the State.
While we are waiting for guidance to plan for the year ahead, we would like to share with you a change that we do know will take place this year.
We will be moving to school-wide arrival and dismissal times. All students in all grades (pre-K through Grade 8) will have an arrival time of 8 a.m. and a dismissal time of 2:30 p.m.
Last year we were unable to dismiss all students at the same time because of the COVID-19 transportation guidance set forth by the State, which allowed for only a fraction of a school bus’ normal capacity to maintain social distance. Last year we also faced a lack of bus drivers and buses, forcing the district to create a second bus run at 1:45 p.m. for our middle school students. This was not optimal but done out of necessity. The district is fortunate to now have additional buses and bus drivers available for the 2021-22 academic year, maximizing our instructional time.
While we now have more buses and bus drivers available, we have yet to receive transportation guidance from the State, which should indicate the number of students we may have on a school bus at once. We would be appreciative of any families who can continue to help us with transportation for the upcoming year by driving their child(ren) to and/or from school. More information is forthcoming when guidance is received.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Dr. Mary Yodis
Wynantskill UFSD Superintendent