What are Lower Hudson schools doing for the eclipse? Glasses, field trips and more

Schools across the Hudson Valley are using the April 8 solar eclipse as a teachable moment, buying students glasses to safely view it, incorporating lessons about it, and in some cases, releasing students early.

The last solar eclipse, when the moon passes directly between the sun and Earth, was in 2017, and after April 8 the next one that will be visible in the U.S. won't be until 2044.

"People need to understand their place in the universe and this really does help," said John Gollisz, a Yorktown High School assistant principal who oversees science. Gollisz drove to Tennessee to see the 2017 eclipse in totality. "It humbles you," he said of the experience.

During the upcoming eclipse, some western and northern parts of the state will be in the path of totality, where the moon completely blocks out the sun. The Lower Hudson will come close — 90-95% of the sun will be covered.

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Science teachers aren't the only ones excited about the eclipse. Yorktown High School is sending 100 high schoolers upstate to view the eclipse from Oneida Lake. The idea for the field trip came from freshman Nick Rizzuti.

Yorktown High School Principal Joe DeGennaro, said Rizzuti's proposal was "a no-brainer."

The only concern, Gollisz said, is whether it will be cloudy that day.

The view from North Rockland High School

At North Rockland High School, Jeanne Maguire and Kaitlynn Scott, co-directors of the Walter A. Hassett Memorial Planetarium, have been teaching astronomy students about the eclipse, showing what it will look like at different times and in different locations on the domed ceiling.

"Having seen one in person, it is a life-changing experience," said Maguire, who also went to Tennessee to see the 2017 eclipse in totality. "It's surreal."

Maguire described how the sky turned to twilight and everything went quiet.

"It's a very eerie, out-of-place sensation. And then the whole thing goes back in reverse. And the sun is bright and shiny, and you walk around for the rest of the afternoon being like, 'Did it really just happen? Did the sun just get blocked out? Did I see Venus? Did I see the stars?'" Maguire said.

Chris Rojas, a senior, said his class learned that when the moon completely covers the sun a ring of light shoots out from around the moon, "but we aren't at the right spot to see that."

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Lyric Hutzelmann, a junior, explained that because the Lower Hudson won't be in the path of totality, enough sunlight will still be exposed that the eclipse won't darken the sky the same way it will in other parts of the state. Without the proper glasses, you won't be able to tell the eclipse is happening.

Both Hutzelmann and Keith Cronin, a senior who took the course last semester, plan to view the eclipse in the path of totality upstate.

In astronomy, students learned how to tell where the eclipse will be located in the sky and identify what zodiacs will be present, as well as planets, altitude and azimuth, Scott said. In a project based off the solar eclipse, students learned about how ancient civilizations used the night sky for navigation and timekeeping and how they interpreted the sky in cultural or spiritual contexts.

Scott said she and Maguire are trying to maximize the planetarium's use for students in younger grades and community members. The planetarium offers the same features that any commercial planetarium has, Maguire said.

Learning about the night sky and the eclipse has North Rockland's astronomy students thinking about their place in the universe.

Junior Addyson Bohlander said the class has learned about how there could be multiple universes and "how the sky actually works."

Eva Lanzillotti, a junior, said learning about how many galaxies and planets there are makes her feel small. And Rojas noted how little humans know about all the galaxies and life beyond Earth.

Related: How to get a pair of solar eclipse glasses from Warby Parker's Westchester eyewear store

Ensuring safety

Many districts are making sure students can safely look at the eclipse by buying their students specially designed glasses. Looking at the eclipse without them can cause permanent damage to your eyes.

Clarkstown, Bedford, Brewster, Hastings-On-Hudson and Yorktown school districts were among the districts that planned on providing glasses to students.

The state Department of Education didn't say whether school districts should provide protective eyewear, but guidance from the department said districts should plan ahead, especially since the eclipse will take place right around the time students are typically leaving school for the day. In the area, the eclipse will begin around 2:10 p.m., peaking around 3:25 p.m., though it varies by location.

Depending on district schedules, some students will still be in school when the eclipse happens, while others' schooldays will already have ended. In North Rockland, high schoolers will already be dismissed while elementary students will still be in school.

Brett Carruthers, senior vice president and director of risk management at the New York Schools Insurance Reciprocal, which insures over 300 public school districts and BOCES throughout the state, sent guidance to member districts, which included only buying glasses that meet specific standards and supervising students while they view the eclipse to make sure they wear their glasses properly. The guidance also warned against looking through a camera lens, telescope or binoculars even with eclipse glasses. Other filters are needed to safely use those devices.

Many schools in the path of totality have been planning for the eclipse for over a year and many will be closed for it, Carruthers said. With an influx of people traveling to those areas, schools are treating the day as they would a blizzard, expecting terrible traffic.

Outside the path of totality, the eclipse will be less noticeable. A few districts in Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties will release students early that day, as is the case in Nyack and Suffern.

Contact Diana Dombrowski at ddombrowski@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @domdomdiana.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Eclipse 2024: North Rockland planetarium, Hudson Valley schools NY prep