News Release August 25, 2020
The Monroe County School District considers the health and well-being of its children and staff to be of the utmost importance. School officials are working constantly with public health officials to ensure everyone stays safe.
On Tuesday, August 25, 2020, school officials were alerted to a child at K.B. Sutton Elementary School who has been diagnosed with Covid-19. The child is being isolated at home. Following pre-established protocols, school officials quickly worked with the Department of Public Health (DPH) to determine other students and staff who may have been in close contact with the student while at school or on the school bus.
Under DPH guidelines, close contact includes being within 6 feet of the person with Covid-19 for 15 minutes or more. Parents of students and those staff members determined to have been in close contact with the student have been notified by school officials. As a precaution, parents are being asked to quarantine those students at home for a specified period of time. Appropriate information from public health has been provided to the parents as guidance.
"Our school staff has planned for and prepared for just this situation," said Superintendent Dr. Mike Hickman. "Use of safety protocols in the school, as well as social distancing and use of masks, have helped to keep exposures to a minimum."
At this point, elementary school children whose parents did not choose on-line learning are in classrooms receiving face to face instruction. Those children assigned to on-line learning are working with school staff to complete their studies. Middle and High School grade levels remain on virtual learning platforms. As community spread numbers continue to trend down, the school system is hoping to return all grade levels to face-to-face learning in the near future.
"We are closely following the guidance of our local and regional public health officials," said Dr. Hickman. "Our first and primary goal is and always will be to maintain the safety and health of our students and our staff, along with their families."
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