Starting today, students in New Rochelle began at least the first month of the new school year learning remotely as the district works to safely reopen.

News 12 got an exclusive look inside the high school building as teachers lead their classes from empty rooms.

And on the other side on the screen, nearly 11,000 students across the district are at home for the first day of classes.

 

District leaders say they're better prepared for remote learning this time than they were back in March when everything shut down overnight.

New Rochelle was the epicenter of the state's outbreak in the spring as school officials just want to take it slow to avoid any other issues.

This year, they're giving every student a laptop and hotspot to make sure every student is connected. One veteran math teacher at the high school told News 12 how his first day of online teaching is going. "Teaching remotely is really, very difficult to get to know who the kids are, who my students are, and what their strengths and weaknesses are, and having them work with each other like they will be when they go out into the real world," says math teacher Steve Newman.

One New Rochelle High School junior is beginning her first classes today. "Part of me is excited to see what this school year is going to hold, but also part of me is definitely sad because you know, I'm not going to be seeing my friends and everything, and I feel like a lot of the school is the social part," says junior Jessica Shapiro.

"They've made it very seamless in the way that they're presenting all of the Zoom links and the classroom structure. We have a schedule for the entire day so that's just helpful. It's like real school happening just virtually," says parent Aline Halle. Halle says her first and second-graders are taking part in a student-lead tutoring program where high schoolers help the younger kids in the district with the material.

New Rochelle parents interested in getting their student involved in the tutoring program can learn more here.