You are reading

Queens Catholic Schools Will Remain Open Even if Public Schools Shutter, Diocese Says

St. Sebastian Catholic Academy in Woodside (Photo: Queens Post)

Nov. 16, 2020 By Allie Griffin

Catholic schools in Queens and Brooklyn will remain open for in-person learning even if New York City public schools shutter due to a spike in COVID-19 cases, the Superintendent of Catholic Schools for Brooklyn and Queens announced Sunday.

Queens and Brooklyn Catholic schools will continue to provide in-person instruction five days a week, regardless as to whether Mayor Bill de Blasio shuts down in-person classes for public school students — something he warned could be just days away.

The Brooklyn Diocese — which also represents the borough of Queens — has had children in school buildings for more than two months without issue and will continue to do so, Superintendent Dr. Thomas Chadzutko said.

“For more than eight weeks, we have been able to maintain in-person learning for our students, mostly five days a week, and we intend to keep doing so going forward this school year,” Chadzutko said. “We know how critical it is for the development of our students to keep our schools open.”

The superintendent made the announcement as the city’s seven-day rolling average positivity rate nears the 3 percent threshold de Blasio set as the marker to close public schools.

The city’s seven-day positivity rate was at 2.77 percent on Saturday — a slight dip from a day earlier when it reach 2.94 percent, according to city Health Dept. data.

De Blasio has held firm on his promise to shutter in-person learning at public schools if the rate reaches 3 percent.

Chadzutko, meanwhile, said all 69 Catholic schools and academies across Queens and Brooklyn will stay open for their students.

“Our children want to be in the classroom and we want them to be there for as long as safely possible,” he said.

email the author: news@queenspost.com
No comments yet

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Major drug bust in Floral Park, nearly four tons of illegal cannabis worth $10M seized: DA

Nearly four tons of illegal cannabis and related products, valued at around $10 million, were seized, and two men were arrested during a raid at a Floral Park storage facility on Tuesday, Sept. 17.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced the details on Thursday, following the execution of a search warrant that day. Awad Aziz, 31, and Muneer Kassim, 34, both of Brooklyn, were arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Wednesday night on charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance after authorities discovered a smaller quantity of crystal meth and Psilocybin products during the raid.

Teenager busted for fatal shooting in St. Albans that killed a father of three from Cambria Heights on Monday: NYPD

A 15-year-old boy was arrested early Wednesday morning and booked at the 113th Precinct in Jamaica in connection to the fatal shooting of a Cambria Heights father of three in St. Albans on Monday afternoon.

The youngster, who was not identified because he is a juvenile, was charged with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon for shooting William Alcindor, 66, as he was driving on Farmers Boulevard just before 5 p.m. on Monday.

Doctor at Woodhaven medical facility busted for allegedly sexually abusing two patients and making inappropriate comments about their genitals: NYPD

A doctor at a Woodhaven urgent care facility was arrested on Sept. 9 by detectives from the Queens Special Victims Squad for sexual abuse and forcible touching of one of his patients last month.

Amir Sitafalwalla, 72, of Fairway Drive in Manhasset, Long Island, was booked at the 102nd Precinct in Richmond Hill and arraigned in Queens Criminal Court for the sexual assault of a 21-year-old man who visited the ModernMD, located at 89-22 Jamaica Avenue.