These 5 Upper East Side Schools Are Closed For Coronavirus Cases

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Five school buildings on the Upper East Side stood shuttered by coronavirus cases this week, as the city prepares to welcome back a new cohort of students for in-person learning.

Since December, the city's schools have been open only to elementary school students and students in District 75 with learning disabilities. Starting Feb. 25, however, middle schoolers will finally return for in-person classes, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced this week.

In the interim, school buildings have continued to close regularly, as they are required to do when at least two COVID-19 cases linked to each other are confirmed in separate classrooms.

As of Wednesday, the Upper East Side's longest closure was at P.S. 290 – Manhattan New School on East 82nd Street, which has been shuttered since Feb. 2. That 10-day closure will last through Thursday.

P.S. 183 – Robert Louis Stevenson on East 66th Street closed for 10 days starting Feb. 3, followed by P.S. 527 – East Side School for Social Action on East 91st Street, which began its 10-day closure on Feb. 8.

On Tuesday, P.S. 6 on East 81st Street closed for 24 hours and Cassidy's Place pre-K on East 86th Street shut its building for 10 days.

Temporary closures are extended to 10 days when infections occurred outside of school or a link cannot be determined.

As of Tuesday evening, the number of temporary or extended building closures across the city stood at 202 — a significant drop from last month's record high of 373. A total of 511 classrooms were closed due to the virus.

While the city's virus rates remain far above the 3 percent threshold that first shuttered schools in November, de Blasio and education officials have repeatedly said the city's schools remain remarkably safe.

Teachers and other staff will return to buildings on Feb. 24, followed by students the next day. About half of the city's 471 middle schools are slated to reopen immediately, with a large number offering five-day-a-week classroom instruction, Chancellor Richard Carranza said Monday.

Patch reporter Matt Troutman contributed.