By Taylor Boyd
With a decrease in the number of cases from earlier this year, Patrick County Schools Acting Superintendent Jason Wood recommended staying the course to deal with the continued concern.
“A lot of schools have had low to zero quarantines and zero positive cases, which is good to show that our mitigation strategies and our quarantines are working,” Wood told members of the Patrick County School Board during a Dec. 9 update.
School officials are reviewing data from a six-week period to determine the number of students to test positive due to exposure at school.
“This data is kind of raw because some did not show where the student became positive for COVID. A lot of them say family exposure or their parents had it,” Wood said.
For example, 159 Patrick County High School students were quarantined over the last six-weeks, with 25 testing positive. Two cases were reported as due to a school exposure.
Hardin Reynolds Memorial School reported 63 total in quarantine, with 14 of testing positive, including three that were determined to be due to school exposure.
“As a division, we have over 360 students who have been quarantined over the last six-weeks, and only two percent of those have been due to a school exposure,” Wood said.
While the division is looking at different ways to quarantine students, Wood said that he, the division’s attorney, its insurance provider, and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) recommend following the current quarantine guidelines and mitigation strategies.
As of Wednesday, Dec. 8, there were 32 positive cases and 116 quarantines in the school system.
Blue Ridge Elementary School reported 14 confirmed cases and 49 quarantined.
Patrick County High School reported nine positive cases and 34 students and staff in quarantine.
Patrick Springs Primary School reported 16 quarantines and one positive case.
Stuart Elementary School reported two cases and eight in quarantine.
There were zero students and staff in quarantine at Meadows of Dan and Woolwine elementary schools, but both schools reported at least one positive case.
No positive cases or quarantines were reported at the Central Office, Transportation Department, Maintenance Department, or Technology Department.
In other matters, the board:
*Heard a performance by the Patrick County High School Praise & Worship Team.
*Approved personnel as amended.
*Accept the Superintendent’s recommendation to appoint Shannon Brown as the Assistant Superintendent of Administration, beginning Dec. 1, 2021.
*Approved Wood’s proposed salary adjustment starting Jan. 1, 2022.
*Approved Wood’s recommendation of a COVID-19 stipend of $500 for contracted full-time employees and $400 for contracted part-time employees employed by the division as of Nov. 2021.
*Approved a consent agenda.
*Scheduled 2022 school board meetings for 5:30 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month.
*Approved selling of surplus technology.
*Approved Shannon Brown as an authorized signature in Wood’s absence.
