On December 9 at 4:00 p.m., Dr. Noni Thomas López, Head of School, sent an email to the community stating that the school would be closed on December 10 and 11 due to a rapid outbreak of illness among students and faculty.
The time off was aimed at allowing students and faculty to “rest and recover, to conduct additional deep cleaning and comprehensive ventilation…and to interrupt the cycle of transmission,” according to the email from Thomas López. Approximately one-third of the student body was sick, “as well as several teachers and staff,” an unprecedented number of absences for the community. The ninth-and-tenth-grade play, “Emma,” was rescheduled from December to January. The school would resume normal operations on December 12, including the ACT on Saturday.
This decision was made by Thomas López and members of Poly’s health and safety team. In an email to the Polygon when school resumed on Friday, Juliet Moretti, Head of Student Support, Health, and Wellness, said she believes this decision was effective in reducing the spread of infection. She wrote, “We heard from families that the pause…allowed students to truly rest and recover. We are hopeful that the weekend provides even more time to focus on health so that by Monday, we record typical absence numbers and a full return to normal routines.”
“The school acted quickly in the interests of students’ needs,” Head of Middle School Dan Doughty said. Doughty acknowledged one potential complication, as it “slightly shifted teachers’ progress in their curriculum; however, there were so many people out that I think they were having to pause anyway.”
“The Lower School has not been affected…Park Slope will continue regular operations,” stated Thomas López, which was reaffirmed by Moretti.
An article in the New York Times published on December 16, “Flu Cases Skyrocket in New York City, Earlier Than Expected,” stated “New York City and the surrounding areas — including Long Island and North Jersey — had some of the highest levels of flu-like illness in the United States as of Dec. 6, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” The article mentions Poly’s temporary closure, as out of 900 students in the Middle and Upper School, “at least 200 students were absent or sent home with the flu or flu-symptoms.”
On December 11, Thomas López listed the sanitary measures that were taken during the time off. These included “electrostatic cleansing methods” (sprayers with electrically charged disinfectants) and UV sanitation technology on the school’s air systems. Thomas López wrote, “We recognize the significant impact that this closure may have on your family and want to underscore that we do not take the decision to close lightly.”
