The Ithaca City School District (ICSD) will move to remote instruction from Dec. 15 until Jan. 4.

Because of the community spread of COVID-19 and the number of students and staff members in quarantine, the district is moving to remote instruction, ICSD Superintendent Luvelle Brown said in an announcement Dec. 14. He said that there will be a testing program in place in January when students, faculty and staff return for in-person learning. There was an entry testing program at the beginning of the school year when students were returning to in-person classes. The ICSD was open for in-person instruction this fall and allowed students to take classes remotely if they wanted. 

“Our community continues to exhibit flexibility, patience and commitment to young people,” he said.

Some schools within the district have had to move to remote learning because of an increase in cases, according to the Ithaca Voice. In total, 23 people who have tested positive have entered school buildings. Across the country, schools operations have not seemed to lead to an increased spread of COVID-19.

Ithaca College students will begin move-in in mid-January. Online instruction starts Jan. 25, and in-person instruction will begin Feb. 8. Cornell University also begins in-person instruction Feb. 8. Tompkins Cortland Community College will begin in-person classes Jan. 27.

Ithaca College currently has 13 active cases and has had 124 total positive cases since Aug. 14. Students, faculty and staff can seek testing from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a break from noon to 1 p.m., every Tuesday in December, except Dec. 29, at the Athletics and Events Center. Symptomatic members of the campus community are not allowed on campus and can be tested at The Shops at Ithaca Mall sampling site or the downtown sampling site.