COVID outbreak forces Coast elementary school to close for 14 days. Class began last week.
South Hancock Elementary School is closed for 14 days due to a COVID-19 outbreak, school officials announced Tuesday night.
The district shared the information with parents in a callout. A transcription of the call was shared with the Sun Herald.
“Teachers and staff will be working diligently tomorrow to prepare for learning to continue while students are at home,” public relations administrator Joan Seals said on the call. “We will be back in touch tomorrow with more information.”
On Wednesday, the district issued a press release about the closure.
“District leaders, administrators, teachers and staff reported to work this morning to prepare for distance learning,” the release said. “Teachers will be contacting parents today with information about distance learning. We know how important in-person learning is for our students, however, the safety of our students and employees is of utmost importance to us. After the 14-day closure, our hope is that we will be able to get back to safe in-person learning.”
The Hancock School District started the school year on Aug. 3. Six full school days passed before the district closed South Hancock.
The day before school started, the district announced masks would be mandatory for students and staff.
Last week, the district reported cases and exposures at several schools to the state health department, which published its first list of COVID-19 cases and quarantines at schools on Tuesday.
Eight students had tested positive for COVID-19 at Hancock Middle School, the highest number in the district.
One to five students and one to five staff members at South Hancock had reportedly tested positive for the week ending Aug. 6. (The state health department does not specify the number of cases when it is under five, in order to protect individual privacy.)
It is not clear how many students and staff had tested positive at South Hancock as of Tuesday evening.
The state health department recommends schools consider closure if three or more COVID-19 outbreaks are reported at the same time. An outbreak is defined as three or more cases in a group setting, like a classroom, sports team or bus.
South Hancock’s closure is the first COVID-related school dismissal the Sun Herald has reported this school year.
This story was originally published August 11, 2021 at 8:53 AM.
