Emily Hays Photo
A Special Education class in session at Bishop Woods School in October.
After Friday, Nov. 20, no students will be in any New Haven Public Schools buildings.
Superintendent Iline Tracey sent out this update by email on Tuesday afternoon. She announced that the district had decided to move its small, in-person Special Education program online-only after Friday.
“As we watch the uptick of positive cases in our schools and the uptick in the community, it is prudent that at this time we discontinue the special population classes until further notice,” Tracey wrote.
The New Haven Board of Education voted in September to allow up to 125 students with severe cognitive disabilities into 11 different school buildings for in-person classes. New Haven students with severe forms of autism and other cognitive disabilities have sometimes struggled to focus on their online classes or understand why they have to sit in front of a computer screen for so long.
The closure follows the district’s decision not to reopen for hybrid classes in early November, as originally planned.
It also follows a rise in Covid-19 cases among students, teachers and other school staff. Three coronavirus cases have been confirmed at Bishop Woods and West Rock schools since Friday, resulting in quarantine for eight others who had been in contact with those who tested positive.
In light of the current uptick; NHPS made a wise call.