Return to in-person instruction is just a week away

Students have one more week of remote instruction before in-person classes resume at Coal City High School.
The school doors have been closed to students for one week and will not re-open until Wednesday, Sept. 30.
As previously reported, the temporary closure was recommended by the Grundy County Health Department due to concern with a potential outbreak of COVID-19 at the school.
On Tuesday, Sept. 15 the school district was notified that four of its high school students had tested positive for the virus, however, it was not the number of cases that prompted the closure rather a close contact within the school.
After contact tracing the first three positive cases reported that day, the school determined 19 additional students were deemed to be in close contact with those positive cases, but the number of close contacts was still not the determining factor.
“The tipping point occurred later in the day when we learned that the fourth positive student was one of the 19 students determined to be in close contact, and that was the student’s only close contact with the positive student,” said Superintendent Dr. Kent Bugg.
Had the district been able to identify the students had been in close contact outside of the school building the temporary shut down would not likely have occurred.
According to the superintendent, absent such evidence the health department had to conclude the virus could have been spread in school.
“It’s that potential transfer of the virus in school, along with the fact that we now had 19 other students who were in close contact, and those 19 other students were in close contact with numerous other students throughout the school on Tuesday. It’s the probability of virus transfer at school and the potential of an outbreak based on other close contacts between students that led the Grundy County Health Department to make their recommendation in hopes of avoiding an outbreak,” Bugg explained in a message to the district’s faculty and staff.
Per the district’s Return to School Plan, the health department is consulted when positive COVID-19 cases arise and their have been a few since the school year began, but until last week none of the cases were traced back to the potential for transfer within a school building.
In his message, Bugg made it clear the health department did not shut down the school, rather based on the information available it made a recommendation for temporary closure.
“To not follow the recommendation of our local public health professionals during a pandemic would put the school in a very precarious situation,” Bugg said, adding he will continue to seek the input and follow any recommendations provided by public health officials with regard to the pandemic.
Again, Bugg made it clear it was not the number of positive cases that prompted the temporary closure, rather the possibility the virus was transferred between students due to a close contact within the school building.
The temporary closure provided the district time to conduct a deep cleaning of the high school, and that was completed late last week.
Additionally, the 14 day closure provided the time necessary for those students deemed to be in close contact with the positive students to complete their mandatory quarantine.
At the time the two-week closure was announced, there were already about 20 high school students who were temporarily out as a result of close contacts that occurred outside of the school building.
Students and staff who have been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for the virus are required to quarantine for 14 days.
The closure also impacted student attendance in Grundy Area Vocational Center [GAVC] programs, however some students have been allowed to resume their in-person coursework.
As of Monday, students in select programs — those who were not part of the required quarantine due to a close contact — were allowed to return to class with permission of the health department and GAVC, so long as wore a face covering and maintained a safe social distance.
However, not all programs were opened to students. The only programs allowing in-person instruction prior to Sept. 30 are those requiring hands-on skills and those with state mandated certification hours.
Those courses are welding, building trades, automotive, health occupations, agriculture, fire science and cosmetology.
High school faculty and staff have been allowed to returned to their classrooms and are conducting their remote learning from the school.
Until Sept. 30, all in-person extra-curricular programming — practices, rehearsals, competitions and events — is on hold.
The temporary closure only impacted the high school, all other district buildings have remained open for in-person instruction and after school care.
No additional cases have been reported by the district.