All Athletic practices and Ski Club are cancelled today after school due to severe weather conditions.
The SSafe program at the elementary school has NOT been cancelled.
Due to expected heavy snow, meal deliveries will take place today instead of tomorrow. Three days' worth will be delivered.
This afternoon South Seneca received information from the Seneca County Health Department that an elementary school student had tested positive for COVID-19. The student began exhibiting symptoms on Friday January 22, and last attended school in person on Wednesday, January 20. As with all cases in our school community, we are collaborating with the Health Department to facilitate contact tracing and any necessary quarantines. We also collaborate with the Department to make determinations about any closures that might be appropriate. Anyone who is to complete required steps as a result of potential exposure is being contacted by the Health Department or by the school district for instructions. This new case is going to add to the number of students and staff who are assigned to mandatory quarantine, but will not require us to extend the already announced week of fully remote instruction for the Elementary School beyond Friday, January 29. We are still scheduled to resume in-person instruction in Interlaken on Monday, February 1. We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details. We continue to urge the community to take all precautions while the pandemic persists in Seneca County. As we have been emphasizing in previous notices, this is especially important during the winter months while contagion for any coronavirus is at its peak. Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
Meal deliveries for South Seneca Elementary will take place Tuesday and Thursday this week. The list will be based on families that received deliveries last time we were fully remote learning. Please reach out to Adam Rundell if you have additional questions. Thanks!
The South Seneca Board of Education will hold its regular meeting on January 27 at 6:30 pm in the MSHS Auditorium in Ovid. Please remember all attendees will be screened at the door, and we will observe all protocols for face coverings and distancing.
This afternoon South Seneca received information from the Seneca County Health Department that two of our elementary school students had tested positive for COVID-19. The two students are members of different grade levels, and last attended school in person on Wednesday, January 20. As with all cases in our school community, we are collaborating with the Health Department to facilitate contact tracing and any necessary quarantines. We also collaborate with the Department to make determinations about any closures that might be appropriate. Anyone who is to complete required steps as a result of potential exposure is being contacted by the Health Department or by the school district for instructions. Unfortunately, these two cases will result in the mandatory quarantine of approximately 80 people, including about a dozen staff members. With this period extending into next weekend, the Elementary School will shift to fully remote instruction for the upcoming week, January 25-29. We expect to be back to in-person instruction on Monday, February 1. We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details. We continue to urge the community to take all precautions while the pandemic persists in Seneca County. As we emphasized in previous notices this week, this is especially important during the winter months while contagion for any coronavirus is at its peak. Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
After some viral dances to warm up, students in the ES getting right to work! #ForeverFalcons #SouthSenecaCSD
This morning South Seneca received information from the Seneca County Health Department that one of our middle school students had tested positive for COVID-19. The student is part of the Cayuga cohort, and last attended school in person on Tuesday, January 19. As with all cases in our school community, we are collaborating with the Health Department to facilitate contact tracing and any necessary quarantines. We also collaborate with the Department to make determinations about any closures that might be appropriate. Anyone who is to complete required steps as a result of potential exposure is being contacted by the Health Department or by the school district for instructions. While the contact tracing in this case will not cause a closure of the school, it will result in a large number of students, and some staff, being forced to quarantine. The Cayuga cohort of this grade level will operate remotely while the quarantines are in effect. We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details. As we shared in yesterday’s announcement, we continue to urge the community to take all precautions while the pandemic persists in Seneca County. This is especially important during the winter months while contagion for any coronavirus is at its peak. Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
This morning South Seneca received information from the Seneca County Health Department that one of our high school students had tested positive for COVID-19. The student attends a TST BOCES program full time, and last attended in-person on Thursday, January 14. As with all cases in our school community, we are collaborating with the Health Department to facilitate contact tracing and any necessary quarantines. We also collaborate with the Department to make determinations about any closures that might be appropriate. Anyone who is to complete required steps as a result of potential exposure is being contacted by the Health Department or by the school district for instructions. In this case, the contacts will certainly result in a number of mandatory quarantines, but South Seneca will not be needing to close any of our in-person programs. We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details. We join all our colleagues, both in the school setting and out, to continue to urge everyone to take the risks associated with the pandemic seriously, and to do all you can to minimize your own chances of exposure to the virus. This includes diligent wearing of face coverings in public spaces, attention to social distancing, and good regular hand hygiene, along with the use of caution when planning any necessary travel or gatherings. Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
"The time is always right to do what is right." Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!
The South Seneca Board of Education will hold its regular meeting Wednesday, January 13, 2021 at 6:30pm in the Elementary Auditorium.
Our buildings will be open again beginning Monday January 11, but our ability to stay open depends on everyone working together. We can all do our part!
Several students in Patty Parsons’ English classes entered Outdoor News Magazine’s Youth Writing Contest, and senior Abbie Reasor won FIRST PLACE in the 9-12 category for Prose! Her piece, titled “What’s on the End of the Line?”, is about fishing in the Erie Canal with her dad when she was younger. Abbie will receive $100, an award plaque and her work will be entered in the Outdoor Writer's Association of America annual writing contest! Way to go!
Season's Greetings to our Falcon Family! We wish everyone a safe and happy holiday! #ForeverFalcons #SouthSenecaCSD
Just two days before our holiday break, we at South Seneca now have over 80 members of our staff and student population in mandatory quarantines as a result of contact tracing related to our three recent cases. In addition to these, we are informed of nearly thirty others in the school community who are now either COVID-positive themselves, or quarantined as a result of exposure to someone who is positive.
As we have been communicating since before Thanksgiving, when groups of staff and students are forced to quarantine at home for two weeks, it creates a substantial disruption to each of their own lives, and to the school program. Those in quarantine, again, have broken no rules, and have only been caught up in the tracing process. They go into quarantine to contain potential spread, which is necessary, but disheartening and inconvenient.
We know from all evidence that once again, there is a reasonable concern that those numbers may spike in the period immediately following the holidays. As a precautionary measure designed to prevent potential large numbers of quarantines into the new year, South Seneca will shift to a temporary fully remote model for instruction in the week after New Year’s Day, January 4 through January 8.
Students should prepare for the week as a school week, and not as an extension of the vacation. Teachers will be in touch to arrange a class schedule. Contrary to the week we went remote after Thanksgiving, there is still a possibility for us to operate small groups of organized activities, such as the highly controlled athletic workouts, etc. Coaches will be in touch with athletes about those arrangements.
We understand that being fully remote can pose a burden on working families, and we encourage those with concerns to reach out to our offices for help. This measure is intended to prevent an even longer burden, as families in quarantine have communicated to us. If the numbers of positive cases and widespread quarantines were to reach a critical threshold, the shift to remote learning could keep us out of the buildings for weeks at a time, which is what we’d like to avoid.
We urge our community to continue to follow all guidelines for staying safe, and we wish full recovery for those having already tested positive.
Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
On Saturday, South Seneca received information from the Seneca County Health Department that two of our elementary school students had tested positive for COVID-19. The two students are members of two different grade levels, and last attended in-person on Tuesday, December 15.
As with all cases in our school community, we are collaborating with the Health Department to facilitate contact tracing and any necessary quarantines. We also collaborate with the Department to make determinations about any closures that might be appropriate. Anyone who is to complete required steps as a result of potential exposure is being contacted by the Health Department or by the school district for instructions.
In this case, because of the timing of the onset of symptoms, contact tracing has resulted in a very large number of quarantines for both students and staff in Interlaken. Out of an abundance of caution, the Elementary School will move to a fully remote model of instruction for the three days leading up to our break: Monday, December 21 through Wednesday, December 23. The Middle-High School was not impacted in this case and will continue as planned with our hybrid model this week. We will revisit our status over the next several days and will communicate any further adjustments to our school calendar as they are decided. On Monday, the district will work to distribute Chromebooks to elementary students as needed for participation in classes.
We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details.
We join all our colleagues, both in the school setting and out, to continue to urge everyone to take the risks associated with the pandemic seriously, and to do all you can to minimize your own chances of exposure to the virus. This includes diligent wearing of face coverings in public spaces, attention to social distancing, and good regular hand hygiene, along with the use of caution when planning any holiday travel or gatherings.
Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.
Seneca County will be running asymptomatic testing sites every Monday from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. starting this Monday, December 21.
There is no cost for this testing and results will be available immediately.
Pre-registration is required at the following link: https://apps.health.ny.gov/doh2/applinks/cdmspr/2/counties?OpID=9900120
Due to the severe weather conditions, regular Thursday meal deliveries will be moved to Friday this week. Thank you for your understanding, stay safe and stay warm! #ForeverFalcons #SouthSenecaCSD
Please be aware that with significant snowfall overnight, persisting into the morning hours, South Seneca will be closed Thursday, December 17. This cancellation includes all classes, both in-person and remote.
Even during the pandemic, South Seneca has been supportive of college students who are studying education, as they must gather field experience in classrooms as a requirement on their way to their degrees. Today, we were informed that one of the college students who spent time in our Middle-High School building last week tested positive for COVID-19. This student observed all appropriate safety measures while in our building, but it is likely that those who had extended exposure time will be subject to quarantine as the contact tracing process around this case is completed. The last time the student was in the building was Friday, December 11. In accordance with our established protocols, we are in close contact with the Seneca County Health Department to make all determinations about any closures that might be appropriate on a case-by-case basis. No portion of our program will need to be closed as a result of this case, although some quarantines of some individuals is expected. We know the community understands that personal identifying information about those testing positive is protected under privacy laws, so we are unable to share those particular details. As the holiday season and colder weather approaches, and while infection rates are increasing over the last few weeks, we continue to urge our school community to take all necessary precautions. Please heed the warnings about indoor gatherings, wearing masks, maintaining social distancing, and seeing regularly to hand hygiene. Thank you for your continued understanding and cooperation.