WACO, Texas — Waco ISD Superintendent Susan Kincannon announced that four schools will temporarily close due to a spike in COVID-19 cases.
University High, Waco High, the Greater Waco Advanced Health Care Academy and the Greater Waco Advanced Manufacturing Academy will close October 9 through October 16, Kincannon said in a release. Students will learn remotely during that time. The four schools will reopen for in-person instruction on October 19, she said.
“As the number of cases of COVID-19 reported at our high schools has increased, so too has the number of teachers and other employees required to quarantine for 14 days from their last contact with someone who tested positive," Kincannon wrote in the letter. "While most of our educators are able to teach remotely while quarantining, the number of employees out presents a challenge for appropriately supervising students without bringing large groups of students together in the same space. Transitioning to fully remote instruction through next week should provide an opportunity for a reset and allow these campuses to reopen on October 19 with most employees back on campus."
In a press conference about the closures, Kincannon said the high schools had been receiving 20 substitute requests per day, per campus, some of which were going unfilled due to the high volume of requests.
Kincannon reported that a total of 25 people on the campuses have tested positive for the virus since the start of the school year. However, she specified that 14 of those cases were reported in the last week.
"Most of those cases are unrelated to each other, and very few involve people who were in close contact with someone else at their campus who tested positive. Still, this is something that we are watching very closely."
The decision to close the schools was made after considering factors like staffing, substitute availability and COVID-19 cases at the four schools, but also across the rest of the school district Kincannon said.
"You have to weigh a lot of factors in your decisions to close and we don't take those decisions lightly. We took a look at the number of substitutes on campuses, the number of subs needed across the district and our ability to manage all of our campuses," she said. "Sending the high school students home at this time to learn remotely not only allows us to make sure that our staff comes back well and that we manage the spread of COVID-19 at those schools, but also frees up our ability to manage our other campuses with substitutes and staffing."
All students from the four schools who were learning in person will receive a laptop to take home to continue learning from home. Those without internet access at home will also be able to check out a mobile hot spot, Kincannon said.
“This is already a school year unlike any other, and this probably won’t be the last time that we have to adjust our plans in response to the virus," she said. "While there are challenges, we’re rising to meet them, together, as a community."
COVID-19 has also impacted some football teams within Waco ISD. University and Waco High both have had games canceled.
Waco High football coach Kwame Cavil told 6 News the school's game against Killeen set for Friday has been canceled. The Lions have an open week next week and will play Duncanville in two weeks.
