Superintendent Ellen Semel sent the following letter to Islip families this evening:

Dear Parents/Guardians:

The number of positive COVID-19 cases continues to be on the rise in our community. With those cases comes an increase in mandatory quarantines and staffing shortages in our buildings. We have been carefully assessing how this rise is impacting our students and staff, and we have made the determination that all Islip school buildings will switch to remote instruction for Monday, December 21 and Tuesday, December 22.

Going remote is a proactive strategy to keep our students and staff safe and healthy during winter recess. Our experience with quarantines and contact tracing tells us that a fourteen day quarantine is necessary once a person tests positive. By going remote on 12/21 and 12/22, we give everyone ample time to rest, recover, and return to in person learning on January 4.

Our holiday break begins on Wednesday, December 23.

Enjoy a safe and healthy holiday season.

Sincerely yours,

Ellen Semel