20 SEPTEMBER 24, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
EDUCATION
Two Queens schools closed
after staff ers report second
cases of COVID-19: DOE
BY ALEJANDRA O'CONNELLDOMENECH
The city has temporarily closed
two Queens public high schools on
Friday, Sept. 18, aft er both reported
a second case of the novel coronavirus
among staff ers in a seven-day
period, the Department of Education
announced.
Beach Channel Educational Campus
in Far Rockaway and P.S. 90 Horace
Mann in Richmond Hill reported
their second COVID-19 cases on Sept.
17, according to DOE offi cials, launching
an investigation and a 24-hourlong
shutdown of the buildings.
It is unclear when the infected
staffers at Beach Channel Educational
Campus and P.S. 90 took their
COVID-19 tests.
Under DOE guidelines, schools
will be shut down if more than one
person not connected by classroom
or student cohort reports testing
positive for the virus within a sevenday
period. So far, four public schools
have had to temporarily close since
buildings reopened for teachers on
Sept. 8.
The fi rst school to close its doors
was P.S. 811X — the Academy for
Career and Living Skill — a District
75 school in the Bronx three days
aft er buildings reopened. District 75
schools serve the city’s most disabled
students.
There are now at least 57 public
schools reporting at least one positive
COVID-19 case, according to the
DOE. Here is of school buildings
with confi rmed cases confi rmed by
the DOE. Number one through 21
had a confi rmed case with the infected
staff er reporting to the school
building. Numbers 22 through 35 are
buildings with a confi rmed case but
the COVID-19 staff er had not been
inside the school building.
HIGHER ED TODAY
Just days into the fall semester, the
City University of New York’s ability to
propel students up the socioeconomic
ladder was recognized in a series of national
rankings of institutions of higher
ed.
The Wall Street Journal named Baruch
College and City College of New
York as the country’s top two “Best
Value” public colleges, respectively.
Those schools were also listed, along
with six other CUNY colleges, among
the top public schools in the northeast,
and also among the nation’s most affordable
and diverse.
CUNY’s quality and affordability
were also recognized by U.S. News &
World Report, which named 10 CUNY
senior colleges among the top performing
public institutions of higher education
in the northeast. The magazine
listed six CUNY schools among the top
25 in promoting social mobility, and six
whose graduates have the least student
debt. And Business Insider, Money.com
and the Princeton Review each also
touted CUNY’s value and affordability
in their rankings, while a study published
earlier this year by the Brookings
Institution affirmed CUNY’s effectiveness
in lifting low-income students into
the middle class.
Our community colleges were also
recognized for their quality in the 2019-
2020 school year, when three were selected
as candidates for the prestigious
Aspen Prize, putting them in league
with the top 15 percent of community
colleges nationwide. Earlier this year,
Borough of Manhattan Community College
was named a finalist for the $1 million
prize.
This all serves to underscore CUNY’s
tangible impact on the city and region,
its economy and residents. Its greatest
impact can be stated in two words: social
mobility.
CUNY’s 25 campuses anchor their
communities, helping all residents of
our city to meaningfully contribute to
the city’s evolving economy. Now, the
University is marshaling its resources
to help the region build back even better
from the economic fallout of the pandemic.
To ensure that our graduates continue
to drive the area’s economic resurgence
for years to come, we have
collaborated with industry partners
and created career readiness programs
for students that will culminate in tens
of thousands of well-paying jobs for the
city’s economy.
of some of the largest employers in New
York will create career pathways for
25,000 CUNY students with a focus on
low-income and Black, Latinx and Asian
communities. The New York Jobs CEO
Council will have a direct impact on the
economy, creating a pipeline of skilled
CUNY workers to the growing workforce.
90-day Upskilling challenge, which is
providing free skills training and includes
course partnerships with Google
and IBM to connect students to employers
who are hiring during COVID-19.
-
ing CUNY in the state’s historic $9 million
Workforce Development Initiative
to support job training opportunities
across New York. The federally funded
program will support job training opportunities
across the state, and will
benefit CUNY colleges including Lehman,
Kingsborough Community College
and LaGuardia Community College,
helping our students adjust to a post-
COVID market.
-
tural Corps, a proven-successful program
that provides a pipeline to careers
in New York City arts and cultural sectors
for students from underrepresented
communities. With new support from
the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation,
CUNY will be able to place hundreds of
additional students in internships and
give them access to the training and exposure
to pursue fulfilling careers in
the arts.
These initiatives represent the kinds
of work-based learning programs that elevate
students and inspire informed observers
to acknowledge our efficacy, and
the benefits are long-lasting. As of summer
2018, we estimated that 1 million
people who graduated from a CUNY college
in the previous half century were
living in New York State, and 82 percent
of those — or 840,000 CUNY grads —
lived in New York City.
From CUNY’s operations and procurement,
research, construction and
student and alumni activities, our colleges
annually generate billions of dollars
for the regional economy, as two
studies noted earlier this year.
When I was appointed Chancellor
in May of 2019, I brought an agenda that
focused on increasing access for traditionally
underrepresented groups. The
COVID-19 pandemic compelled us to
quickly pivot to distance learning, but
it didn’t alter my priorities. It only made
them more urgent.
After all, when we provide a path upward
for all New Yorkers, we are moving
the city forward. I can’t think of a better
cause to get behind in these uncertain
times.
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