Teachers are asking the state to ease restrictions around music and arts- as sports continue to run safely.
“It was very specific just to singing in class and playing a wind instrument such as an instrument in band and up to this point,” Canandaigua Music Academy teacher Greg Kane told News10NBC over the weekend. “Nothing has changed in the guidance.”
There’s a 12-foot rule for music classes, which are the same guidelines that were in place when the pandemic began.
Advocates for resuming the arts say that’s too much.
“12 feet of spacing for children is a game-ender,” Kane added. “They can’t overcome that social-emotional barrier in participating in something they love when they feel like they are doing it alone.” He’s sent four letters to Gov. Andrew Cuomo asking for the state to change the rules- to at least six feet.
There are also performance masks available, which can help. Sen. Pam Helming and Assemblyman Jeff Gallahan have been hammering Cuomo for weeks on this issue. Other lawmakers have joined, but it hasn’t pushed the state to change rules yet.
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