COVID-19 numbers for North New Summit School in Greenwood spiked last week while other schools in the area listed few if any cases in the latest report from the Mississippi State Department of Health.
North New Summit reported it had 11 students and one staff member quarantining due to exposure to the virus and from one to five new COVID-19 positive cases among staff for the week of March 1-5, according to the Health Department’s numbers.
When cases are between one and five, the exact amount is suppressed to protect personal identity, according to Health Department guidelines.
North New Summit, a private school, has been holding in-person classes since August.
Among public schools, several Greenwood Leflore Consolidated School District schools were missing from the data: Amanda Elzy High, Amanda Elzy Junior High, Claudine Brown Elementary, Bankston Elementary, Davis Elementary and Threadgill Elementary.
However, Margaret Dean, the district’s spokeswoman, said, “After conferring with our district nurses regarding the schools who are not listed, there were no cases reported for staff. Students are not in the buildings,” Dean said.
One school that did report, Greenwood Middle School, reported that one to five staff members had tested positive for the virus.
The district is on spring break this week, but about 15% of the student population will begin on Monday a hybrid class schedule, which combines both in-person and distance learning. For a year, students in the district have been continuing their classes virtually.
The Carroll County School District and Pillow Academy, which showed slight bumps at the end of February, are back down to zero cases and zero quarantining individuals. Both have conducted in-person classes since August.
Delta Streets Academy and Carroll Academy again did not report their virus numbers to the health department as both private schools continue to ignore the directive of state health officials.
• Contact Adam Bakst at 581-7233 or abakst@gwcommonwealth.com. On Twitter at @AdamBakst_GWCW.
