Superintendent's Letter September 3, 2021

September 3, 2021 

Dear Onteora Community, 

We are excited to welcome our students back to school on Wednesday, September 8, 2021. Our priority as we look to bring all of our students back to 100% in-person instruction is to keep everyone safe. 

As you may be aware, last night the New York State Department of Health Commissioner, Dr. Howard Zucker, instituted mandatory weekly testing of all faculty and staff of P-12 schools effective immediately. This mandate also applies to all contract employees (contract bus drivers.) Our goal is to have a mandatory testing system in place by the second full week of school. 

We are partnering with Neal Smoller of Woodstock Apothecary whose staff will be administering the testing program for us. 

For those parents who choose, once we have our staff testing system operational, we will work with Dr. Smoller to offer weekly screening testing to unvaccinated students. Additional information and required parent consent forms will be sent at a later date. 

Thank you for your patience, partnership, cooperation, and support as we continue to work together to have a successful school year. 

Sincerely, 

Marystephanie Corsones
Interim Superintendent