Nearly 50 students, staff quarantined after COVID cases in Harris County School District
Another person in the Harris County School District has tested positive for the coronavirus in the first week of the fall 2020 semester.
Two students and three HCSD employees are listed as being infected with COVID-19 in the updated report for Aug. 10-17 the school district released Tuesday night. That’s one more student compared to Monday’s report.
On Monday, a parent forwarded a copy of the message received Sunday from Harris County High School about a person at the school testing positive for the virus. HCSD spokeswoman Rachel Crumbley confirmed then that the one student listed in Monday’s report is the infected person at the high school.
Wednesday, however, she declined to disclose where the second infected student attends, citing the same reason for keeping the location of the employees confidential: privacy concerns.
The five total COVID-19 cases have required 43 students and six employees who had close contact with the infected people to quarantine at home for 14 days, according to the report. HCSD has 5,528 students and 763 employees.
“We need everyone to remain vigilant in following the health guidelines that have been set forth,” HCSD superintendent Roger Couch said in the news release. “We greatly appreciate the overwhelming positive response of students, parents and the community. Hopefully, seeing the numbers will keep everyone focused on staying safe. Adherence to the safety protocols is having a great impact on our school environments.”
Pamela Kirkland, spokesperson for the West Central Health District in the Georgia Department of Public Health, told the L-E her office conducts the contact tracing for these cases as it does for all cases in the region.
“We can’t stress enough to students, as well as everyone in the community, to continue to wash hands, wear masks, and socially distance, at school and away from school,” Couch said. “Practicing these things all the time gives us the best chance of reducing viral spread.”
HCSD has given families the option of in-person or online classes. Here’s the breakdown of their choices:
- 73% in person.
- 26% online
- Less than 1% withdrew.
Asked what number of positive tests will prompt HCSD to stop in-person instruction and go to online-only classes, Couch told the L-E in an email Wednesday night, “In working and planning for the school year with the Georgia Department of Public Health, there was no predetermined point set at which the Harris County School District would switch to virtual learning.
“We continually monitor all data and work closely with public health officials. The safety of the individuals on campus in the Harris County School District will always be the top priority. In consultation with health professionals and ongoing data analysis, any modifications to current protocols will be made without hesitation.”
The L-E asked that question to school board members as well. The two members who have been reached, Bridgett Oliver of District 2 and Monica Sparks of District 7, declined to share their opinion.
This story was originally published August 19, 2020 at 10:10 AM.
