Back-to-school is right around the corner in the Lower Hudson Valley.
The 2025-2026 school year starts with a bell-to-bell internet-enabled device ban in all New York public, BOCES programs and charter schools. Cell phones, smartwatches and all kinds of other devices will have to be locked away during the school day, including during lunch and free periods.
Gov. Kathy Hochul baked the “Distraction Free Schools” policy into the state budget.
It’s been controversial — an Aug. 12 Sienna Research Poll showed that 60% of New Yorkers support the “bell-to-bell” ban and 24% oppose it. Administrators have to figure out the best way to achieve the new regulation’s goals, although many districts have already had similar rules in place.
As for students? A group of Suffern Middle School incoming eighth-graders recently talked about the existing ban on their campus and how it impacts them.
“I feel a lot calmer,” said Fiona Price.
Bus driver shortage eases, but challenges remain
A statewide shortage of school bus drivers is starting to ease, districts report, but Lower Hudson Valley districts and school transportation companies anticipate challenges.
When in-person school started up again during the COVID pandemic, many retiree-age drivers didn’t return amid concerns for their health, even with safety measures in place. Recruitment efforts have ameliorated some of that loss over the past few years, transportation leaders say.
Another challenge, school transportation leaders say: the legalization of recreational marijuana in New York. While cannabis is now legal for adult use in New York, federal regulations still ban school bus drivers from using it at all. So cannabis users are removed from the pool of eligible drivers.
The driver shortage, though, continues to ease since the post-COVID crunch.
“People recognize that driving a bus is a good way to make more money and not monopolize all your time,” Rockland BOCES Director of Transportation JoAnne Thompson said. “There are down times during the day if you have something else to do.”
When does school start in your Lower Hudson Valley school district?
Here’s when the 54 public school districts in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties start:
Tuesday, Sept. 2
Westchester: Blind Brook; Chappaqua; Elmsford; Hastings-on-Hudson; Ardsley; Bedford; Briarcliff Manor; Bronxville; Byram Hills; Croton-Harmon; Dobbs Ferry; Edgemont; Greenburgh; Harrison; Hendrick Hudson; Irvington; Katonah-Lewisboro; Lakeland; Mamaroneck; Mount Pleasant; Ossining; Peekskill; Pelham; Pleasantville; Pocantico Hills; Port Chester-Rye; Rye Neck; Scarsdale; Somers; Tarrytowns; Yorktown.
Rockland: Pearl River; Clarkstown; Nyack; South Orangetown.
Putnam: Brewster; Carmel; Garrison; Haldane; Putnam Valley.
Wednesday, Sept. 3
Westchester: Eastchester (kindergarten orientation on Sept. 2); Mount Vernon; New Rochelle; Yonkers.
Rockland: Nanuet and North Rockland.
Putnam: Mahopac (transition day for kindergarten, 6th and 9th grades on Sept. 2).
Thursday, Sept. 4
Westchester: North Salem; Valhalla; Tuckahoe; White Plains.
Rockland: East Ramapo and Suffern.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: When does school start in Lower Hudson Valley NY districts? See dates, issues for 2025
Reporting by Nancy Cutler, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
