Back-to-school event spawns COVID cases among ‘several’ families, Georgia school says
UPDATE:
On Friday, Cobb County Schools reported 253 cumulative cases of COVID-19, according to the district’s coronavirus notification page. The district-wide totals reflect confirmed cases dating back to July 1, 2021.
Cobb County students returned to class on Aug. 2
ORIGINAL:
Several families have tested positive for COVID-19 and several more may have been exposed after attending a back-to-school event last week, according to officials at a Georgia elementary school.
In a letter, King Springs Elementary School urged parents to “be diligent in monitoring your children every day for symptoms” before sending them to school for the first day of classes Monday.
“We are super excited to get this school year started!” it reads. “Following our wonderful Sneak A Peek on Thursday, we’ve been notified that several families have positive cases of (COVID-19) and attended our event. Since this was a fluid event with people mingling throughout the building, we thought it best to send a low-risk letter to all families.”
A similar letter was reportedly sent to families at Teasley Elementary School after an open house event there, according to WAGA.
Both schools are part of the Cobb County School District in Smyrna, a city about 15 miles northwest of Atlanta.
It’s unclear how many families were infected or how many others were possibly exposed. When reached for comment, a district spokesperson told McClatchy News: “Like we did last school year, we will continue to update our school community every Friday on the number of cases at our schools using our COVID notification webpage.”
Cobb County welcomed students back to class on Monday, though some parents opted to continue virtual learning as Georgia and much of the U.S. see a spike in new coronavirus cases. The district has also made mask-wearing optional, despite the high rate of community transmission in Cobb County, according to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“When I walked in on Thursday I was shocked,” parent Cherish Burnham told WAGA about the lack of masks at the meet-and-greet event. “I said something to an administrator, several teachers.”
She isn’t the only parent who has concerns.
“School hasn’t even started yet and we’re already getting these,” one parent wrote on Facebook, accompanied by a screenshot of the King Springs Elementary memo. “Yet Cobb County Schools still doesn’t want to change their mask mandate.”
Cobb parent Lisa Cutler, whose two children attend Lassiter High School in Marietta, said she and her family are fully vaccinated but were still “very nervous” about them returning to the classroom.
“I have no science background, no medical background,” Cutler told McClatchy News in an interview. “All I have is mother’s intuition, and it’s just ugly.”
The district updated its public health protocols Wednesday, reiterating that masks are “strongly encouraged” but not required for students and staff. Additionally, students who come in close contact with someone who may be infected with COVID-19 but are asymptomatic can “return to class or work the next day if the student or staff member remains asymptomatic and wears a mask while on school district property for ten days after exposure,” according to the district’s website.
Less than a week into the new school year, Cutler said her children tell her only a few students and teachers are masking up. The school’s principal isn’t wearing a mask at all.
“This is (about) our kids’ health,” Cutler said, noting that kids under 12 “have no chance” because they can’t be vaccinated yet. “Luckily, that’s not our situation, but I know plenty of people who do. It’s really frightening, and how does this end for us? I thought we were on an upward trend, but we are not.”
Cobb County schools is set to publish its weekly total of active COVID-19 cases starting this Friday.
This story was originally published August 4, 2021 at 8:56 AM with the headline "Back-to-school event spawns COVID cases among ‘several’ families, Georgia school says."