“In the beginning of all of this, the one advantage the rural communities had was they were more isolated,” said David Little, executive director of the Rural Schools Association of New York State. “And it almost led, in the initial stages, to [an attitude of] ‘this really isn’t about us.’”
But as the omicron variant spreads, rural schools are struggling to stay open just like their urban and suburban counterparts are.
Parents and students have adhered to safety measures like social distancing, handwashing and sanitizing in school buildings for the most part, according to both Little and Kristi Windsor, deputy director of Monroe County Schools in Tennessee.
