Based on the number of COVID-19 notifications that we have sent out over the last week, we are sure that you are aware that we have experienced an increase in the number of positive COVID-19 cases. As of this morning, our data shows the following:
29 Positive COVID-19 cases between students and staff.
109 At School Close Contact
Of those, 83 students are enrolled in the test to stay protocol or are vaccinated and remain in attendance
26 students are participating in remote learning from home.
34 Out of School Close Contact-Are not eligible for the test to stay protocol.
While these numbers are significant, we will continue to maintain in-person learning. The guidelines allow school districts to take an “adaptive pause” if the number of positive cases warrants it. The local health department must be consulted prior to a school adopting an adaptive pause. During an adaptive pause, a school district can close all or some of its buildings in order to respond to the increase in cases. Students would then engage with their teachers in remote learning.
While our numbers are high at this time, the data does not support the need to adopt an adaptive pause. We will continue to monitor the data and make the best possible decision. In the meantime, we will continue to follow our cleaning protocols, encourage proper social distancing, remind students to frequently wash their hands, and work to maintain a safe environment.
We know that these are trying and frustrating times. Parents and students have many questions about the policies and procedures, and we encourage you to contact us for information. At the same time, we assure you that our health services and administrative staff are working very hard to schedule and administer the test to stay protocols as well as contact trace when we have positive cases. Many of our staff have shared personal phone numbers and have made themselves available to be contacted, and this has made it very easy for some families to get answers to questions. At the same time, you can imagine the number of calls that some of our staff are getting in the evenings and on the weekends. Moving forward, we ask that if you do need to contact a health services staff member or an administrator, please do so through school email or by calling the school. In addition, if you do not have a direct email, we ask that you direct your questions to illinicentral@illinicentral.org.
During the winter break, we ask that you notify the school if your child contracts COVID-19 or has exposure to a person who is COVID positive. Please use the illinicentral@illinicentral.org email account if possible. We will monitor that email over the break. We want to make sure that we know which students may need remote learning when students return to school on January 4, 2022.
It would be easy to let the COVID data cast a negative light on our situation. It has been a challenging semester, and we know that we are all ready for better days. Despite some of the setbacks, we have maintained student attendance in person. Students are learning, participating in extracurricular activities, and growing as individuals. We will continue to close the gaps and make up for lost time. It will not happen overnight, but as a school community, we are overcoming the challenges. We will be successful. We are IC.
We wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe and happy holiday season.