COVID-19 in Relation to Students and Adults
The bulleted information below is from the Oklahoma State School Board Association (OSSBA) and may help with understanding how COVID-19 is most likely to spread with regard to students versus adults.
- Schools haven’t contributed to community outbreaks as has been the case with other settings where people gather.
- Cases in schools increase where there is higher community transmission so monitoring community transmission is important. (State epidemiologist Dr. Jared Taylor has recommended school districts use county-level case counts in addition to data on whether testing is increasing and the percentage of positive tests in collaboration with guidance from local health officials).
- Schools are unlikely to contribute significantly to community transmission when rates of community transmission are low and schools have infection prevention measures in place.
- Children with COVID-19 are more likely to have become infected at home than at school, but continued mitigation strategies at schools are important because even young children can be asymptomatic carriers.
- Adults are at higher risk of infection and severe disease so schools should consider ways to reduce transmission to and from school staff.
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School Thanksgiving Dinner Information
This year will be different due to the situation surrounding the dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases in the area. No outside guests will be invited this year as a measure of precaution and protection. This is an unfortunate situation that has plagued schools and the entire nation since last March.
Recently, cases in Texas County have dramatically increased causing an extra effort to take precautions in hopes to minimize the spread of the disease and protect everyone in and out of the school. To date, no cases that have affected the school schedules and everyone at the school were caused by a spread of COVID-19 within the school. All cases occurred outside of the school. This is a clear indication that efforts at the school have been successful thus far with the cooperation and hard work of staff and students.
We wish everyone a very safe, healthy, and Happy Thanksgiving!