Addabbo and Pheffer Amato tour a school and synagogue in Far Rockaway to see their COVID safety protocols

On the morning of October 9th, State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. and Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato visited the Torah Academy for Girls and the White Shul in Far Rockaway to see what precautions they put in place to keep their students and staff safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Torah Academy for Girls installed thermal scanning to take the temperature and attendance of anyone who enters the school building, partitions to enhance social distancing protocols in the classrooms, new air filters, Cello UV lights to clean the classrooms, a new driveway for an additional entrance for students, and more upgrades. The White Shul also has installed new partitions in place, as well as social distancing measures and signs enforcing mask wearing so those who attend the shul to pray are safer.

Addabbo stated, “The efforts of this school and synagogue to help slow the spread of the coronavirus and keep the students and their families, faculty and staff safe should be acknowledged and appreciated. The Torah Academy for Girls and the White Shul are prime representation of this community’s efforts so we all can get past this current spike in COVID-19 cases.”

Pheffer Amato stated, “I couldn't be prouder of the leadership of the schools and shuls in Far Rockaway, who spared no expense to ensure that every requirement was followed and then some! The only way these institutions considered opening was with keeping health and safety the number one priority.”