Due to the historic solar eclipse that will impact a large part of the country, the BH-BL administration has switched the K-5 half day of school from the originally scheduled April 25 to Monday, April 8. (Thursday, April 25 will remain a half day of school for 6-12, only.)
The eclipse will occur at the end of the school day and partly coincide with elementary school dismissal, therefore, the district is opting to ensure K-5 students are home during this time period. High school and middle school students will already be home at the time of the solar eclipse occurrence. The path of totality will be just a short distance away in the Adirondacks and Western NY. Even though this area is not in the path of totality, the eclipse will be more than 90 percent complete here.
The event will likely be extremely intriguing, which could lead to people having their eyes on the sky and not the roadways while our school buses are on the road–and when students and staff would normally be on their way home. In addition, we wish to give students an opportunity to safely view the eclipse with the proper precautions in place, instead of attempting to view it while in transit.
We encourage students and families to learn about how to safely view the eclipse, which is the first total solar eclipse in New York since 1925. The next one in New York won’t occur until 2079.
For more on the April 8 eclipse, please visit: https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2024/where-when/
A friendly reminder that if you and your children choose to view the solar eclipse that you use appropriate viewing glasses that have been approved for solar viewing. For more on how to safely view the eclipse, please visit: