Response to four unrelated COVID-19 cases contracted off campus
CHARLOTTE —Charlotte Catholic High School has shifted to at-home learning for the rest of this week, after consulting with local health officials in the wake of four unrelated cases of COVID-19 that were contracted off campus.
In a letter to parents Tuesday, Principal Kurt Telford said, “While we are confident in the safety measures we have in place at Charlotte Catholic, we have decided to take these extra precautions because nothing is more important than the health and wellbeing of our students, staff and families.”
Students were dismissed early Tuesday afternoon after picking up materials and instructions from their teachers to transition to prearranged remote learning plans.
CCHS received reports starting Sept. 7 that four members of the school community tested positive after separate incidents of off-campus exposure to COVID-19. In each case, Telford said, school leaders worked with the Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools’ nursing director to identify students and staff who could have come into contact with the infected individuals, and they were directed to self-isolate to prevent any potential spread at school. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control defines exposure as being within close contact (less than 6 feet) of someone with COVID-19 for 15 minutes or more.
The four positive cases represent 0.3% of the high school’s population of approximately 1,200 students. Both the health department and the school said the four cases did not meet the definition of a “cluster” – which state health officials define as at least five cases within two weeks that are linked and traced to the same location.
Telford said school officials chose to move to remote learning for the rest of this week in collaboration with the Mecklenburg County Health Department “to provide an added layer of protection so that any possible additional contacts can be identified.”
CCHS will use the time this week for further contact tracing and to monitor for any possible new cases. The school building will also receive an additional deep cleaning according to recommended protocols, Telford said.
Afterschool activities have also been canceled for the rest of the week, the school announced.
CHHS is prepared to return to limited in-person instruction as early as Monday, using a hybrid A/B schedule, with the goal of a full return to campus as soon as appropriate, Telford told the Catholic News Herald. Friday, Sept. 25, has already been set aside as a teacher work day, so there will be no classes that day.
CCHS opened for in-person instruction Aug. 31 with extensive safety protocols that include daily health screenings, frequent cleaning and handwashing, face coverings, safe distancing, protective barriers and other measures to keep students and staff healthy and safe. The measures are based on guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services.
“We believe, and research shows, in-person learning is best for students’ academic, social, emotional and spiritual growth,” he said. “We will continue to work closely with health officials to ensure our risk mitigation strategies are reasonable and practical while prioritizing safety as well as in-person instruction in accordance with our school’s religious and academic mission.”
In his letter to parents, Telford said, “We will keep you informed if our plans need to change based on new information or further recommendations from public health officials. As always, we appreciate your trust in our proven risk mitigation strategies, and value your collaboration in ensuring that our students are mitigating risk where possible outside of school.”
— Catholic News Herald