Emilia Teasdale is reporting for The Columbia Paper Ichabod Crane school district Superintendent Suzanne Guntlow announced to the Board of Education on March 2 that 40 percent of the district's staff has been vaccinated against COVID-19. More staff are in the process of being inoculated. Guntlow said that fully vaccinated staff members do not have to quarantine when exposed to the coronavirus, a status that will help keep the schools open. The board hosted its March meeting in-person in the primary school cafeteria, and on Zoom, as well. Three board members, some administrators and about 80 members of the public attended online. The remaining board members and other administrators were present in person, but the public was absent. Guntlow reported that student course failure rates in the second quarter have decreased and that the school is offering several programs to help struggling students, including in-person classes every Wednesday when normally only online classes are offered for middle and high school students. She also said the federal government intends to deny waivers from states that want to defer standardized testing this year. New York will require some state Regents exams, but those plans have not been finalized, Guntlow said. The district is now awaiting detailed guidelines on reopening. Read more in The Columbia Paper.