Schools see rise in absenteeism - OR
From Staff Reports
Tuesday, October 13, 2009 | No comments posted.
Cover that cough. Wash those hands.
That’s the advice of teachers and administrators in Bay Area schools who are keeping doors open despite high absentee rates. North Bend schools have been hit hardest, though Coos Bay teachers also noticed fewer students in their classrooms Monday.
Principal Ralph Brooks reported 258 students were absent Monday from North Bend Middle School, which carries a student body of 573.
“We’re trying very hard to stay ahead of it, but at the middle school today, we had a lot of kids absent,” said Superintendent BJ Hollensteiner at a Monday meeting.
Hillcrest Elementary also had its own share of absentees, with about 115 sick children out of 575, reported Principal Bruce Martin.
Martin and Brooks said sick kids’ parents reported influenza-like illnesses.
Absences are not as widespread among students in the Coos Bay School District. There were 80 students absent Monday at Sunset Middle School, where the student body is 450, a secretary said. And there was a similar number of absences at Millicoma Intermediate School, though in both cases not all those absences were due to illness.
Teacher absences at the two schools have been minimal, secretaries said.
Angie Webster, one of two Coos Bay district nurses, said the number of absences are in line with a normal flu season.
Hollensteiner said there are hand sanitizers available in classrooms, cafeterias and bathrooms for students to use at the schools. Disinfectant wipes have also been passed out to use on doorknobs and the like.
The North Bend superintendent said classes will continue as usual unless too many teachers call in sick. She explained that if there aren’t enough substitute teachers to fill those positions, schools could close.
http://www.theworldlink.com/articles/2009/10/13/news/doc4ad4b9782c3a6632938785.txt
October 13, 2009
District closes Cleveland Elementary
Published today
The Emery County School District has made the decision to close Cleveland Elementary School after today, October 13th, for three days, October 14-16. School will open again on Monday the 19th.
Cleveland Elementary School is a small rural school with a student population of 187 students. Cleveland has had nearly 50% student absenteeism the last two days due to student illness. The illnesses being reported are varied and are not all related to H1N1 virus. The local health department is also working with community and church leaders to curtail community and church related activities involving children who attend Cleveland Elementary School for the next several days. The School District has also asked parents to keep children home during the school closure and to curtail activities that allow students to congregate with friends or in groups.
While the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) does not recommend school closure to control the spread of the flu (the idea being that it is better to keep healthy kids in school and have sick kids stay home), the school district feels that the rate of illness at the school is disrupting education and that it would be better to close for a few days to allow students to heal and return to school on Monday, October 19th.
While other schools are not currently experiencing the same rate of illness that Cleveland Elementary has seen, the district, in consultation with the Health Department, will assess the need to close schools on a school-by-school basis. The district is also advising their schools to be cooperative and flexible with students and parents with regard to providing homework and with attendance policies during this flu season.
http://www.ecprogress.com/index.php?tier=1&article_id=8373