WBFO Education Desk

Fredonia State is ramping up its COVID-19 testing in the wake of major problems on the campus.

Buffalo school students are getting a break from the public library system: more open hours after school closing time.

The Williamsville school district lurched again Thursday evening, as it ordered all middle and high school students into virtual learning, just days after the School Board put the superintendent on administrative leave. His replacement said he has a better idea.

Around 1,300 Williamsville Central Schools students had no classwork Tuesday and won't have classwork Wednesday. Superintendent Scott Martzloff was effectively fired from his $236,000 job Monday over a rocky restart of the school year. However, the new acting superintendent said there will be a plan soon.

The State University of New York is pushing hard against the coronavirus, with a massive increase in testing using tests newly developed by SUNY Upstate.

The AAA of Western and Central New York is out with its annual "School's Open - Drive Carefully" campaign. This year, as schools reopen under a different operational model, drivers are being reminded again to look out for youngsters. And, they're being told to be vigilant, not just during the traditional school bus hours but also throughout the day.

Tensions over how and when to safely reopen schools continue to run high, even as several Western New York school districts prepare to start classes next week. WBFO’s Kyle Mackie reports on one group of workers that’s caught in the middle of all of it: teachers.

More harsh warnings to students, as hundreds of COVID-19 cases close down a SUNY campus for the semester.

Over the weekend, the State University of New York at Oneonta became the first in the 64-campus system to shut down in-person classes for two weeks after a coronavirus outbreak. State and college officials are trying to prevent that closure from becoming a trend.

The Buffalo Teachers Federation requested an emergency injunction from the state supreme court Monday that would prevent Buffalo Public Schools from requiring teachers to report to school buildings at least two days per week this fall, if secured.

In the fight over whether students should be studying virtually, in school every day or some combination, there are students caught in the middle. Some are in vocational or career and technical education and need mostly hands-on training. That is hard to do at home.

Buffalo Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash described the district’s decision to start the coming school year remotely on Thursday as “inclusive, systematic and thoughtful.” Buffalo parent leaders, however, said that’s not exactly the full story.

Buffalo Public Schools will join dozens of other city school districts like Chicago, Los Angeles and Philadelphia in starting the 2020-2021 school year fully remotely. The Buffalo school board unanimously approved the proposal from Superintendent Dr. Kriner Cash during a virtual meeting Wednesday night.

In a nearly hour-long interview with WBFO Wednesday, Superintendent of Buffalo Public Schools Dr. Kriner Cash spoke about the district’s reopening plans and why he doesn’t feel comfortable with a full in-person return to school buildings this fall.

Buffalo Public Schools are about a month away from opening for the new year and even that's not definite. Schools Superintendent Kriner Cash told an online public meeting Monday night there are a lot of "ifs" and "buts" in the future.

Governor Cuomo announced on Monday that 107 school districts have yet to submit reopening plans to the New York State Department of Health. However, this announcement has caused some confusion among school districts that didn’t even know they were supposed to.

Salamanca is just one of nine Western New York school districts that were listed as having not submitted their reopening plans to the Department of Health.

The Buffalo Teachers Federation is looking at a lawsuit against city public schools reopening under the plan submitted to Albany.