VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The following is a news release by Valley City Public School Superintendent Josh Johnson.
“Our school district continues to closely follow the presence of COVID-19 in our schools. After 23 days of school, I believe things have gone well, and our students/staff/parents are making responsible “individual” decisions to prevent the spread of any type of virus in our school district and community.
Here is a general breakdown of the past 4 weeks related to COVID-19:
Active Positive Cases (Avg. in Past Four Weeks)- Averaging 2 active positive cases per day (0.16% of students/staff)
Location- Majority of cases have been with 7-12 students
Contact Tracing- No confirmed cases of spread within VCPS (yes, close friends and family have spread cases)
Student Absences (due to illness) Past Three Weeks- Avg. of 35 k-12 students absent daily due to illness
At the beginning of September, we had surveyed our staff and parents regarding masks and contact tracing. This information was reported at the public board meeting and referenced below for your information.
Parents (436 responses)
68.58% No to District Masks; 31.42% Yes to District Masks
62.93% No to Elementary Masks; 37.07% Yes to Elementary Masks
57.21% No to Contact Tracing; 42.79% Yes to Contact Tracing
Staff (104 responses)
75.96% No to District Masks; 24.04% Yes to District Masks
64.08% No to Elementary Masks; 35.92% Yes to Elementary Masks
65.38% No to Contact Tracing; 34.62% Yes to Contact Tracing
Our school administration has been notifying parents via email when a positive case has been identified in a classroom (elementary), grade level (secondary), or activity team (secondary). We have been asked by a few parents and healthcare officials in our community to modify our notification letter and include additional information “encouraging” close contacts to wear a mask, providing the date of last exposure, and information about testing. We are reviewing these recommendations; however, please know decisions regarding masks and testing will remain with the individual students/staff/parents in our school district. So far, this approach appears to be working after 23 days of school. If this changes, we will be prepared to change as well.
Many predictions have been made by healthcare organizations that the peak of the COVID-19 wave in North Dakota will be at the beginning to mid-October. Thank you for helping us to maintain a healthy and safe school environment for our students and providing everyone with the ability to make individual/personal decisions with COVID-19. We will continue to closely follow COVID-19 in our school district and remain ready to change our plans if necessary.”
Josh Johnson
Superintendent
Valley City Public Schools
(701) 845-0483