State: College students expected to return this fall with their shots

This week's top stories

1. Mandatory vaccines for college students

All students returning to in-person instruction at SUNY and CUNY schools statewide this fall must be vaccinated against COVID-19, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced, while Hofstra University said it would institute the same requirement beginning in September.

Hofstra's mandate covers all students except those who are in fully online programs or those taking in-person classes remotely.

SUNY officials said they are putting together a plan to implement the governor's directive.

Cuomo said mandating students to be inoculated hinges on a decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to fully approve the vaccines, which currently are administered under an emergency use authorization.

Read the full story.

2. More than half opt out of exams

More than half of students across 61 Long Island school districts in grades 3-8 opted out of taking the English Language Arts exams, a Newsday survey found.

According to data collected from the districts, 52.5% — or 43,723 children — declined to take the ELA exams, which wrapped up at the end of April.

• Prior years have drawn large boycotts of these assessments, with some parents and educators saying the tests do not accurately measure student achievement.
• Of the districts — there are 124 on Long Island — that responded to Newsday, 47% of students in Nassau did not take the exams, and 55.7% in Suffolk.

Read the full story.

3. Nassau launches bus program

Nassau County could launch a new school bus camera program as soon as September to crack down on motorists who illegally go around school buses while students are exiting and boarding.

• Under the program, cameras would be attached to buses' stop arms to record license plates of drivers who fail to stop.
• Ultimately, violators could be forced to pay as much as $356, including a county administrative fee.

Read the full story.

4. District investigates comment

An Amityville Memorial High School staffer allegedly made a "disturbing and derogatory" comment toward Black players during a livestream of the school's football game last month and has been banned from the campus while the incident is investigated, according to Superintendent Mary T. Kelly and Long Island NAACP officials.

• The comment, made by a white teacher during Amityville's April 24 game against Commack High School, used racially insensitive stereotypes, according to the Rev. Saba Mchunguzi, president of the Central Long Island NAACP branch.
• In a statement read aloud during a special meeting of the Board of Education at the high school, board president Terry Fulton said the board was "aware of allegations a district teacher made offensive remarks during a district activity."

Read the full story.

5. Five districts seek to pierce cap

Five of Long Island’s 124 school districts will ask voters Tuesday to exceed the state limit on the amount they can raise school taxes for 2021-22, but approval requires a supermajority vote of 60%.

• The districts — Wantagh, Sagaponack, Islip, Three Village and Bridgehampton — are asking voters to pierce the tax cap during an unprecedented time, according to a Newsday analysis.
• Costs rose sharply during the past year to provide schooling amid the coronavirus pandemic, but many districts also received millions in federal aid.

Read the full story.

Resources for you

• Check out Newsday's best high school sports photos from the month of May.
• The State Board of Regents recently adopted a policy to promote and support efforts in schools, colleges and universities to create an ecosystem of success built on a foundation of diversity, equity, inclusion, access, opportunity, innovation, confidence, trust, respect, caring and relationship-building. The Board recently released the full text of its policy statement for parents and educators.
• The New York State Library’s DayByDayNY website provides a new e-book. Check it out here.

Round of applause

A Bellport High School student with a passion for aviation is flying high after her latest achievement.

Kerri Campbell, a senior who has been attending classes remotely amid the COVID-19 pandemic, recently passed her "check ride," a Federal Aviation Administration examination one must undergo to receive an aircraft pilot's license or a rating for additional flight privileges.

Campbell, who aspires to be an airline pilot, also can now fly a single-engine plane with passengers as pilot in command.

"I have basically spent my whole life flying; it has been my whole focus," Campbell said

Your questions answered

Have questions? Send them to ednews@newsday.com. Newsday’s education reporting team will pick one to answer in this space each week.

Where can voters find information about the upcoming school elections?

Residents go to the polls statewide on Tuesday to vote on budgets and members of their local boards for the coming school year.

On Long Island, they will decide on hundreds of millions in school spending, elect candidates in races across all 124 districts and consider propositions in some school systems that often includes funding for renovations, upgrades and property purchases.

Polls are open during the day Tuesday but for four districts. Great Neck, Hewlett-Woodmere, Lawrence and West Hempstead voted May 11 due to a conflict with the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. Voters approved the budgets in each district.

Newsday has compiled a database that lists all the candidates, the number of seats open on local boards, school budget details and the tax levy. This database will be updated with election results after Tuesday’s vote.

— Find the latest education news at newsday.com/long-island/education. Joie Tyrrell can be reached at joie.tyrrell@newsday.com or on Twitter @JoieTyrrell.