Covid-19: Rapid Growth in Cases Exposes Vulnerabilities Although the Northeast, particularly New York State, was the epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak in March and April, states like New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts imposed stringent measures that limited personal interactions, such as closing all non-essential worksites, limiting gatherings to groups of 10 or less, and requiring people to wear masks in settings […]
Despite Agitation to Reopen Businesses, Upstate Covid-19 Cases Are Not Declining Upstate areas are seeing increasing pressure to reopen currently closed businesses as the economic damage from Covid-19 restrictions increases. With millions of New Yorkers unemployed and businesses facing the prospect of permanent closure, there is real need for relief. But reopening should take place in a way that does not lead to significant growth in […]
Reported Covid-19 Cases Increase in Upstate New York Although New York State is seeing a decline in the number of new reported Coronavirus infections, the decrease is concentrated in downstate New York. Reported new Covid-19 cases in upstate areas are increasing. The increase is associated with an increase in the availability of tests for the virus. New Cases Decrease Statewide New Covid-19 cases […]
New Covid-19 Cases Decline Throughout New York The number of new reported cases of Coronavirus in New York State has begun to decline. The chart below, which shows the three-day moving average of new cases, indicates that after plateauing from April 3rd to April 10th, a decline began, with cases decreasing from a peak of more than 10,000 to less than 5,000 […]
Will New York Reopen for Business by May 1st? Recent reports show that President Trump would like to reopen the national economy within a few weeks. The Washington Post reported that “President Trump — concerned with the sagging economy — has sought a strategy for resuming business activity by May 1.” More recently, the President said that he expected some states to reopen before […]
Coronavirus’s Impact in New York State – The Curve Flattens Although Coronavirus cases continue to increase in New York State, the rate at which they are increasing is slowing, most likely because the State and Federal actions requiring social isolation have slowed the transmission of the disease. The decrease in the rate of increase is evident in both downstate and upstate metropolitan areas. But, the […]
A Closer Look at Student Performance in Upstate City Schools Parents in central cities seeking good educations for their children face the disconcerting reality that relatively few city school children pass standardized tests required by New York State, suggesting that the schools are failing. In Rochester, Buffalo, Syracuse and Schenectady, less than 20% of students passed state required English Language Arts and Mathematics exams in 2016 […]
Rochester’s Broken School System Kent Gardner argues forcefully in the Rochester Beacon that Rochester’s school system is broken and in need of radical change. Gardner’s post highlights the efforts of a local organization, ROC the Future, to bring about reform of the city’s school system. Gardner is correct – students in the city’s schools do poorly compared to others […]
