As President Trump pushes unproven claims about children and “immunity” to COVID-19, the first few weeks of school have highlighted the risks that premature reopenings pose to students and their families.
In the short time since schools have welcomed students back to campus, explosions of new cases have forced hundreds across the south and midwest to return to quarantine. The results have been chaotic, as districts rush to quell outbreaks.
Schools in the South and Midwest Are Returning to Isolation as Students and Staff Test Positive
At Mississippi Public Schools, There Has Been 199 Confirmed Cases Of Among Students And 245 Among Teachers, Forcing Thousands Of Students And Teachers Across The State To Quarantine.
- “Mississippi public schools have confirmed 199 cases among students and 245 among teachers, Dobbs said, and school districts have ordered 2,035 students and 589 teachers to quarantine at home for two weeks after possible exposure to COVID-19. Schools in 71 of Mississippi’s 82 counties have reported cases, the state health officer said.” [Mississippi Free Press, 8/17/20]
In Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, Discovery Schools Shut Down Four Campuses After Students Tested Positive For COVID-19.
- “Discovery Schools, a 2,400-student charter school network in Jefferson Parish, has opted to shut all the system’s campuses down until Sept. 11 due to positive coronavirus tests… Four Discovery students have tested positive so far, and they are spread across three of the system’s four campuses, [Discovery Schools Head of School Patty] Glaser said.” [The New Orleans Advocate, 8/14/20]
The Broken Bow School District In Nebraska Announced That They Were Cancelling Classes After 3 Staff Members Tested Positive.
- “A Nebraska school district announced on Saturday that classes have been canceled after staff members tested positive for coronavirus, following similar closures in other states, according to reports. Three staff members in the Broken Bow School District tested positive for COVID-19, with 24 more staff members in quarantine for exposure, superintendent Darren Tobey said in a statement. The cancellations only affect pre-school and grades 6 to 12, though, meaning elementary school classes can continue.” [Fox News, 8/16/20]
A Week After Reopening, Hamilton County Schools In Chattanooga, Tennessee Closed Four School Buildings After 13 Employees Tested Positive.
- “Stay at home if you’re sick,’ said Tim Hensley, spokesman at Hamilton County Schools in Chattanooga, Tenn., where four school buildings were temporarily closed after reopening last week. ‘We found in a couple of our cases, people had actually even gone in to be tested but came to school anyway.’ The Hamilton County district is tracking statistics on employee cases and plans to do the same for students starting this week. As of Aug. 17, the district reported 13 active cases of employees testing positive for Covid-19, 35 having contact with someone with the virus and tests pending for 85 others.” [Wall Street Journal, 8/17/20]
Nearly 2,000 Students And Staffers In Cherokee County, Georgia Are In Quarantine After Coming Into Contact With Individuals Who Tested Positive Since School Reopened August 3.
- “About 1,921 students and staffers in the Cherokee County School District in suburban Atlanta have been quarantined after coming in contact with dozens of others on campuses who tested positive for the coronavirus since school opened Aug. 3. The district has closed three high schools to in-person learning with reopening possible Aug. 31. Families in the district can choose between in-person and online learning; 77% have chosen to learn in person.” [Wall Street Journal, 8/17/20]
Plainview Public Schools In Nebraska Was Forced to Push Back Reopening Schools After The Superintendent Tested Positive And Exposed 8 Employees.
- “Darron Arlt, superintendent of Plainview Public Schools in Nebraska, announced at an emergency board meeting Aug. 12 that he had tested positive for Covid-19. School was to start the next day but it has been pushed back to around Aug. 27 because he came in contact with other employees. ‘Six teachers and two administrators were deemed to be ‘close contacts’ and therefore required to quarantine for 14 days,’ said Dr. Arlt. ‘We plan to mandate masks for staff and are still considering the same for students.’” [Wall Street Journal, 8/17/20]
Clusters Emerge as College Students Return to Campus
Less Than One Week Into Classes, The University Of North Carolina At Chapel Hill Was Forced To Shutdown All In-Class Instruction After 177 Students Tested Positive.
- “The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, one of the largest schools in the country to bring students to campus for in-person teaching, said Monday it will pivot to all-remote instruction for undergraduates after testing showed a pattern of rapid spread of the novel coronavirus. Officials announced the abrupt change just a week after classes began at the 30,000-student state flagship university. They said 177 cases of the dangerous pathogen had been confirmed among students, out of hundreds tested. Another 349 students were in quarantine, on and off campus, because of possible exposure to the virus, they said.” [Washington Post, 8/17/20]
A Sorority House At Oklahoma State University Reported Having 23 Coronavirus Cases.
- “A group of sorority sisters are quarantined together after their chapter reported 23 positive coronavirus tests at Oklahoma State University. The outbreak, at an off-campus sorority house near the university’s Stillwater location, was detected by rapid-antigen testing done at an off-campus clinic, the university said in a statement Saturday. The university and the Payne County Health Department are monitoring the chapter and performing contact tracing.” [NBC News, 8/16/20]
The University Of Notre Dame Experienced A Spike Of Covid Cases After Reopening, Reporting 29 New Infections Between August 6 And August 14.
- “The University of Notre Dame reopened earlier than many colleges this fall, with students returning to campus on Aug. 3… However, two weeks after opening, Notre Dame’s data shows a spike in COVID-19 cases. Though students were all tested before returning to campus and have to fill out health screenings every day, in the week-long span of Aug. 6 to Aug. 14, the university has reported 29 cases.” [Yahoo News, 8/14/20]
Eighteen Students At Georgia College Tested Positive For COVID-19 In The Days Leading Up To And Following The First Day Of In-Person Learning.
- “Eighteen Georgia College students have tested positive for the coronavirus in the days leading up to and immediately following the first day of in-person learning. Milledgeville’s Georgia College re-opened last Wednesday, August 12th, making it one of the first of Georgia’s 26 public colleges and universities to re-open for face-to-face education.” [Fox 5 Atlanta, 08/16/20]