SCHOOL CLOSED FOR ILLNESS

A possible stomach flu swept through the Ramaz School Wednesday, Dec. 9, causing the school to close for several days.

Administrators believe that a quarter of lower school students, staff and faculty—around 140 to 150 people—caught the stomach virus, based on reported symptoms such as vomiting, low fever and diarrhea. The school noticed the high absence rate that morning, and all three divisions were closed by Wednesday afternoon. Similar symptoms were reported Dec. 11 in a Staten Island school, P.S. 3.

The lower school, at 114 E. 85th St. between Park and Lexington avenues, closed for the rest of the week, and programs for Hanukkah at a connected synagogue, Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun, were also canceled the following weekend.

The upper school, for students in grades 9 to 12, was closed Wednesday, Dec. 9, but opened for the rest of the week because there was only one possible case of illness.

A spokesperson for the city’s health department said an investigation is ongoing and that the department will officially determine the illness.

“It spread from child to parent. It was a very quick spread,” said Kenneth Rochlin, director of institutional advancement at Ramaz.

Ramaz has since sanitized and cleaned facilities and urged parents to keep possibly ill students home. All divisions were open Tuesday, Dec. 15. The school was closed the previous day for Hanukkah.

SUBWAY STAFF CUTS

Several Upper East Side subway kiosk booths are slated to close or lose employees in the upcoming year.

Affected stations on the 4, 5 and 6 lines include the 59th and 86th Street express stops, and the 77th and 110th Street local stops.

The cuts are part of the elimination of a 2004 pilot initiative, the Station Customer Assistance Program, which had clerks leaving their booths to help riders in the station. By scrapping the program, 570 customer assistance employees and 26 supervisors will be eliminated in stations throughout the city. All affected stations will continue to have one full-time operated booth.

The program was nixed due to budget problems and declining revenue, according to the MTA. The savings are expected to be $52 million. The MTA is also cutting sanitation staff to save money.

Members of the transit union, local legislators and transit advocates are worried that the downsizing will leave subways unsafe and unsanitary.

Gene Russianoff, an attorney for the Straphangers Campaign, said the station staff is crucial for riders who need assistance while traveling and adds a sense of security.

“I strongly believe that station agents are the eyes and ears of the system,” Russianoff said. “Their motto is, ‘If you see something say something.’ The question now is to whom.”