Tag:

Pandemic Impact

Arlington, VA
Schools
Math, Reading Scores Hit Historic Lows For HS Seniors: 'These Results Are Sobering' Math, Reading Scores Hit Historic Lows For HS Seniors: 'These Results Are Sobering'
Math, Reading Scores Hit Historic Lows For HS Seniors: 'These Results Are Sobering' Math and reading scores among high school seniors are at their lowest level in more than 20 years, according to new federal data. The National Assessment of Educational Progress released its first post-pandemic results, as part of what's known as "The Nation's Report Card," on Tuesday, Sept. 9. The NAEP compiled scores for eighth-grade science, along with 12th-grade math and reading. The findings show declines across most groups and reveal the largest share of seniors ever scoring below the “basic” benchmark in math and reading. "These results are sobering," said Matthew Sol…

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by Chris Spiker
Albany, NY
Business
One Last Round Of Margaritas: Iconic Albany Mexican Restaurant Closing After 42 Years One Last Round Of Margaritas: Iconic Albany Mexican Restaurant Closing After 42 Years
One Last Round Of Margaritas: Iconic Albany Mexican Restaurant Closing After 42 Years A longtime Albany staple is preparing to serve its final meals after more than four decades in business. El Loco Mexican Café, located at 465 Madison Avenue, will permanently close on Saturday, Sept. 6, an employee confirmed to Daily Voice. “This is not a decision I came to lightly,” owner Patrick Noonan said in a statement. “The restaurant world has changed dramatically since the pandemic, and while we have worked tirelessly to keep El Loco thriving, the truth is the landscape around us shifted in ways we simply couldn’t ignore.” View this post on Instagram …

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by Michael Mashburn
Arlington, VA
Business
Foxtrot Unexpectedly Closing All DC-Area Markets Foxtrot Unexpectedly Closing All DC-Area Markets
Foxtrot Unexpectedly Closing All Dc-area Markets A beloved Washington DC staple is closing its doors for good. The owners of Foxtrot Market announced that it is ceasing its retail operations in DC, as well as its locations across the country, "after much consideration and evaluation," effective as of Tuesday, April 23.  An announcement came months after Dom's Kitchen & Market and Foxtrot Market merged. Not much notice was given, as the message was posted to the company's social media sites shortly after 12:30 p.m. on the day they shuttered the doors. The company's website is also now down. The closure will impact all 33 Foxtrot corn…

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by Zak Failla
Vernon-Rockville, CT
Schools
CT Colleges Face Large Cuts To Services, Price Hikes As Funding Disappears CT Colleges Face Large Cuts To Services, Price Hikes As Funding Disappears
CT Colleges Face Large Cuts To Services, Price Hikes As Funding Disappears Colleges and regional universities across Connecticut are expecting a $140 million deficit next year now that pandemic-era funds are drying up, the CT Mirror reports. The Board of Regents of Higher Education, an organization that oversees that state's 12 community colleges, state universities, and the online Charter Oak College, said the cuts by state lawmakers tightening their budgets along with the loss of federal funding is equal to 11 percent of the entire state system budget, the outlet said. The University of Connecticut in Storrs and its satellite campuses are planning for a $70 mill…

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by Kathy Reakes
North Hunterdon, NJ
News
NJ Catholic Diocese Sells Sprawling Luxury Home Of Former Archbishop For Less Than $1M (PHOTOS) NJ Catholic Diocese Sells Sprawling Luxury Home Of Former Archbishop For Less Than $1M (PHOTOS)
NJ Catholic Diocese Sells Sprawling Luxury Home Of Former Archbishop For Less Than $1M (Photos) The controversial retirement home formerly occupied by Newark Archbishop John J. Myers sold for $910,000, church officials announced. The 7,300-square-foot home at 51 Lower Kingtown Road in Pittstown (Hunterdon County) sits on more than eight acres of land and features many luxury amenities, according to the real estate listing (click here for photos). Those include two elevators, a heated outdoor pool, an indoor exercise pool, four fireplaces, a central vacuum and more. The home has five bedrooms, five bathrooms and a three-car garage, with two distinct living areas that share a…

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by Cecilia Levine
Hamilton Township, NJ
News
TOLL HIKE? Brace For Higher NJ Bridge Tolls Across Delaware River TOLL HIKE? Brace For Higher NJ Bridge Tolls Across Delaware River
Toll Hike? Brace For Higher NJ Bridge Tolls Across Delaware River Drivers who cross any of the eight Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission’s spans between New Jersey and Pennsylvania face two proposed toll increases this year and in 2024, authorities said. The need to hike state bridge tolls is being blamed on lost revenue during the coronavirus pandemic. The proposed increase, announced Monday, would be implemented on April 3, if approved by the board of commissioners at a March 29 meeting. The proposed hike comes just a month after the bridge commission approved a 2021 budget that state officials boasted had no toll hike. The 2021 proposed increa…

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by Jon Craig
Greenwich, CT
Business
COVID-19: Popular Market In Fairfield County To Close After Half-Century In Business COVID-19: Popular Market In Fairfield County To Close After Half-Century In Business
Covid-19: Popular Market In Fairfield County To Close After Half-Century In Business A Fairfield County staple for nearly 50 years will be forced to shut its doors due to financial hardships brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Owner Jim Magee of Peter’s Weston Market announced on Wednesday, Jan. 27 that the popular market, which had been struggling financially before the pandemic, will have to close its doors for good after a last-ditch fundraising effort failed. Magee said that over the last five years, sales have declined 10 percent annually, though expenses have increased. The financial struggles were then compounded by the pandemic, which limited in-store sales and hur…

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by Zak Failla
Elizabeth, NJ
Business
Customer Revives Popular Union County Diner Crippled By Pandemic Customer Revives Popular Union County Diner Crippled By Pandemic
Customer Revives Popular Union County Diner Crippled By Pandemic A family-owned Westfield staple will remain in business, thanks to a mass community effort that raised nearly $40,000. It started with loyal Vicki's Diner customer Patricia Steckler, who started a GoFundMe for struggling owners Peter and Helen Rentoulis, who have helmed the diner for more than two decades. “Vicki's Diner is a joyful gathering place in downtown Westfield,” reads the fundraiser. “Peter and Helen Rentoulis…welcome everyone with warmth, humor, and delicious food.  "Sadly, since March and the pandemic, they have depleted their savings in order to pay their staff …

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by Valerie Musson
Massapequa, NY
News
COVID-19: 20 Catholic Schools To Close In New York COVID-19: 20 Catholic Schools To Close In New York
Covid-19: 20 Catholic Schools To Close In New York A total of 20 Catholic schools in New York, including 11 in New York City, will not reopen due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  The permanent closures will impact approximately 2,500 students and 350 staff members. "The coronavirus public health crisis has had a devastating financial impact on Catholic school families and the greater Archdiocese," the Office of the Superintendent of Schools of the Archdiocese of New York said in a statement released Thursday, July 9. The New York City schools closing are: Corpus Christi School, Manhattan Nativity of Our Bless…

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by Joe Lombardi
Bedford, NY
News
COVID-19: Most New Yorkers Expect Bad Business Conditions Ahead, New Poll Says COVID-19: Most New Yorkers Expect Bad Business Conditions Ahead, New Poll Says
Covid-19: Most New Yorkers Expect Bad Business Conditions Ahead, New Poll Says COVID-19: Daily Voice's Interactive Map Of NYC Metro Area Cases Most New Yorkers expect poor business conditions when the state is finally on the other side of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, according to a new poll. The New York State Index of Consumer Sentiment sits at 66.4 percent in the first quarter of 2020, down 26.6 points from the fourth quarter of 2019, according to the newest poll by the Siena College Research Institute (SCRI). In New York, the overall Index of Consumer Sentiment is 22.7 points below the nation’s Index of 89.1 points. All three indexes for New Yor…

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by Zak Failla