New York City high schools reopen but gives option for students to remain remote

New York City high schools reopened this for the first time since they were closed in November 2020 due to a rise in coronavirus infection rates.

Most students, about 70 percent, will continue online learning because they chose to sign up for all-remote classes.

Students are now given the option to choose again between returning to the classroom or continuing to work from home. They will be allowed to sign up as early Wednesday, with elementary schools returning to in-person learning in April, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Middle and high school students who are at home full time are able to sign up during the two-week opt-in period, which will be between March 24 and April 7. However, the date they will be permitted to return to the classroom is not yet decided.

On Monday, 488 high schools partially reopened, according to POLITICO.

The New York school system shut down in mid-November after the city’s COVID-19 infection rate rose to 3 percent. Elementary schools resumed in-person learning in December and middle schools in February. The citywide infection rate has been at about 6 to 7% recently.

"We want to obviously have the maximum number of kids back that we can do safely," de Blasio said at a press briefing Monday. "Our goal is maximum number of kids back, maximum number of days per child."

Many high schools have students take all-remote classes even if they are in the classroom because of staff shortages and scheduling complications resulting from the city’s hybrid learning system. De Blasio said the situation was not "the norm."