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Garnet Valley Middle School shifts to all-virtual learning due to COVID outbreak
Dawn Timmeney reports on how a COVID outbreak at Garnet Valley Middle School has forced the school to revert to all-virtual learning for students
GLEN MILLS, Pa. - Garnet Valley Middle School is returning to all-virtual learning beginning Tuesday, April 27, school officials announced Monday.
Citing a recent increase of coronavirus cases and five new cases Monday, school officials said it was taking the action to shift students to all-digital learning for the rest of the week.
In a statement released Monday, officials said:
"This decision allows us to mitigate the continued increase in probable or positive individuals who are in attendance during their contagious period, which will also lessen the opportunity for transmission within the school."
The middle school went back to full, in-person learning, except on Fridays, at the beginning of April, with more than 60 percent returning to the classroom, despite precautions. There have been a total of 18 cases in 12 days.
"It didn’t give us enough time to contact trace the cases and then communicate with families in time for school tomorrow," Garnet Valley School District Superintendent Dr. Marc Bertrando stated.
The district said it is a very involved process to ensure everyone is safe.
"Once we learn of a case, we have to look at that child’s schedule, look at the seating charts in each class and then do calculus of which students were within six feet, within a prolonged period of time," Dr. Bertrando explained.
The spike in cases at the middle school comes amid a spike in cases across Delaware County, according to the Director of Delco COVID Task Force.
"The cases have not been going in the right direction. We are seeing a lot of the variant strain, so it’s more variants. It’s spreading more easily," Director of Delaware County COVID Task Force Rosemarie Halt stated.
School officials went on to say they hoped to reopen the building to students to return for in-person learning Monday, May 3.
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