Sports, Drama, Concerts Canceled At HCPSS Due To COVID Cases

Ellicott City MD

16 December, 2021

2:47 PM

Description

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — All sports, drama, music concerts, field trips and extra curricular activities have been shut down at the Howard County Public School System due to what officials call an "alarming" increase of COVID-19 cases. The district noted that since Nov. 18, the district has seen an increase of almost 225 positive COVID cases in a three-day period compared with data on Nov. 18. There also are 3,720 students and 146 staff members in quarantine. As of Dec. 16, Howard County had 24,023 total positive cases and 11,851 total active cases. "It is absolutely essential that we do all we can to keep schools open and ensure each school remains a healthy learning environment for students and staff. The escalation in positive cases has put a strain on school health staff to accurately identify and complete close contact communications in an efficient manner. In fact, the current number of cases in many of our schools has become challenging from a notification standpoint," HCPSS Superintendent Michael Martirano said. So in an effort to slow the spread of the virus and keep schools open, HCPSS has suspended immediately through Jan. 15 the following activities with a reevaluation of COVID cases Jan. 7 to determine if an extension is necessary: Athletic practices and contestsTheater rehearsals and performancesSchool concerts and performancesExtracurricular activitiesField trips All activities that may move to virtual participation can do so, Martirano said. The use of HCPSS indoor facilities also will not be permitted for any activities except for before and after care. Schools will work with PTAs to move in-person meetings and events to a virtual format. Contracted staff who work for before- and after-care and other service providers, such as bus drivers, are still required to maintain their vaccine or testing requirement for employees and universal masking remains in place. "It is critical that all families continue to monitor their child's health each day before they leave for school and do not send your child to school if they display any symptoms of COVID-19 or other communicable diseases. Additionally, maintain masking wherever possible and get the vaccine if you haven't already," Martirano said. "Several months ago as we were planning for this school year, I was very clear: Not only do we want to start the 2021-2022 school year with fully in-person education for the majority of our students, we want to keep it that way for the entire year. Not for two weeks. Not for two quarters. But the entire year," he added. "This decision has been made with that singular priority in mind to keep our students in school by implementing as many possible mitigation strategies to assist." Martirano said that everyone must work together to "be part of the solution to stem the spread of this virus, keep schools open and be able to participate in the social and recreational activities we all enjoy." "Our actions over the course of the coming weeks can play a direct role in reducing case rates and allowing a safe return to these activities. Please do your part to keep our school communities safe, healthy and nurturing environments for all students and staff," he said.