Eagle Grove Area Community School District Superintendent Jess Toliver confirmed Monday that there are teachers who have tested positive for the Coronavirus. The first case was diagnosed last week. At time of press, there were approximately 25 staff members who had either tested positive or were asked to self-quarantined due to COVID exposure.
“Our practice has been that if a staff member is exposed to a positive case, that they are kept out of the schools until they receive a negative test result themselves,” said Toliver.
But the results can be slow, and this alone is causing a problem for the school district. According to Toliver, they are running out of teachers and even substitutes.
In a meeting held Monday morning, Sept. 21, Toliver said they addressed teachers as “essential workers” and decided that if they were wearing their PPE gear (which is required in all school buildings within the district) and were exposed to a COVID positive case – if they tested negative themselves they could continue working in their designated building.
As far as the student population, there have been approximately 30 that have been asked to quarantine because of exposure to positive cases. Any student considered exposed is quarantined for 14 days regardless of a negative or a positive test – the reasoning being, according to Toliver, that the rapid fire tests are only useful if you are showing symptoms. If you have no symptoms, you have to wait approximately five days before testing, and then it is taking five to seven days before test results are back…which equals out to nearly 14 days anyway. Some students have also tested positive. If a student/teacher receives a positive test result, they are quarantined 10 days from the first day of symptoms. Students who are in quarantine are currently keeping up-to-date with their classes through Google Classroom.
“I think we have a community outbreak right now both in and out of the school,” said Toliver. “The severity of this will determine what we as a school district do next.”
He added that it won’t take many more positive cases within the schools before they will be forced to apply for a short-term (two week) virtual waiver, which would allow them to offer online classes only for that duration.
“In the last week-and-a-half, both in and out of school, I’ve seen more positive cases than I’ve seen in a long time, and that’s concerning. We are not to a point where we are trying to prove that people have it, but rather trying to stop people from getting it,” said Toliver about the possibility of closing the in-person classrooms temporarily.
Toliver reiterated that at this point in time, the main reason for the switch to 100 percent virtual would be due to the number of staff being quarantined.
“I think the next few days will be very telling for the school and what model we will use in the near future,” he said.
On the minds of many athletes and parents of athletes – if the school does go virtual for two weeks, athletic competition would be able to continue as normal – as long as students continue to follow the current safety guidelines.
If you believe your child has been quarantined and should not have been, Toliver said you can seek a note from the Wright County Public Health Department who will consider your contact tracing history and make the decision.
The Eagle Grove Area Community School District WILL NOT:
• Provide personal identifiable information, including the grade-level and building, of those testing positive or who are in quarantine.
• Immediately change learning models due to a single positive case.
• Allow an individual with a positive case to return to school before we are confident it is safe to do so.
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:
Who will be asked to quarantine due to a COVID-19 exposure? When can they return to school?
When a positive COVID-19 test is confirmed, Eagle Grove will work in partnership with Wright County Public Health to conduct contact tracing and notify individuals/families of possible exposure to be placed on a 14-day quarantine. Students determined to be exposed will be required to be quarantined for the full 14 days from the last known exposure.
How will quarantined students continue their learning?
Students in grades 3 – 12 placed in quarantine should take their Chromebook home with them. Continuous learning will be provided to all students through their regular classroom teachers while they are quarantined. Students with IEPs may be give additional learning opportunities based on their individual needs. After notification of the need to be quarantined, students/parents should watch their email for communication regarding remote learning.
How will rumors and privacy be addressed?
You may hear from your child about a student or staff member who is absent from school. Please understand that this does not mean that they have COVID-19 or that they have been exposed. Please talk with your child about respecting people’s privacy in regard to health-related information and don’t assume all illness or absences are a diagnosis of Coronavirus.
