Sheboy kicked off new quarter with live COVID test
In the library of James I. O’Neill High School last Tuesday evening, with Assistant Superintendent Dr. Andrea Tejedor and Andrew Regenbaum, Horizon Family Medicine’s COVID-19 coordinator and compliance officer watching, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Frank Sheboy had a rapid COVID test done. It came back negative.
It’s a good thing it was, he joked after the two nurses who conducted the test gave him his results. That’s because in addition to the two spectators in the library, there were another 100 or so people watching virtually. The test was done during a Highland Falls-Fort Montgomery Central School District ‘Town Hall’ meeting on the reopening of school buildings this week.
It was a meeting where Sheboy was making a plea to the families of HF-FMCSD students to allow the school district to test students for COVID. Because the Highland Falls Intermediate School sits in an area of Highland Falls currently considered a ‘yellow zone’, the State Education Department requires the testing of some 20 percent of students to make sure the school’s positivity rating remains low.
“We do believe that instruction is best served when our children in the building and we are working tirelessly toward that,” Sheboy said, noting that the goal all along has been to get kids back into the building. The district reopened its buildings back in November for just two weeks
“Our goal is to reopen. Everybody’s goal needs to stay open,” the superintendent added, reminding families that if children don’t feel well they should be kept home, and that parents should answer health screening questions “with fidelity” every day.
“We’ve put in place so many things, but we as a school district can’t do this on our own, we need our families to partner with us.”
Among the questions that were answered included guarantees that parents could be with students when their COVID tests are given and await their results (they can — “I want our students to be comfortable doing this,” he said); can students get rapid testing done in another location instead of at school (they can’t); if parents can show antibody results on their child can they be excused from testing (they can’t); will the district be mandating the vaccine for the district’s teachers (they won’t); and is there a saliva test that can be done instead of the nasal swab (there isn’t).
One of Sheboy’s end messages for parents was that the school district won’t make medical decisions for students, and added that parents should address questions about their child’s health to their own physician.
By the way, Sheboy noted as the meeting concluded that the test he took on camera was his first-ever COVID test. He promised it did not hurt a bit.
“Folks, we have to do all these things to keep our kids safe,” he said.
“Remember, when in doubt, keep them out. We are really going back in our buildings, but how long we stay there is up to our whole community.”
