Augusta school closures continue amid COVID-19 concerns; 18 this week

Miguel Legoas, Augusta Chronicle
·2 min read

Richmond County School System has made 17 complete school closures this week and one partial school closure, all because of COVID-19.

Garrett Elementary, Glenn Hills Middle and Hephzibah Middle schools have been shifted to full distance learning starting Friday, Jan. 14. The schools will not return to in-person instruction until Wednesday, Jan. 19.

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As of Friday, Jan. 7, the school district reported COVID-19 cases and quarantines in the schools as follows:

  • Garrett Elementary: five positive students, 17 quarantined students, no positive employees and one quarantined employee.

  • Glenn Hills Middle: two positive students, six quarantined students, four positive employees and six quarantined employees.

  • Hephzibah Middle: two positive students, two quarantined students, two positive employees and two quarantined employees.

As of Friday, Richmond County, the school district has confirmed 122 students cases, 84 employee cases, 632 students quarantined and 170 employees quarantined.

The district releases updated numbers only on Fridays at rcboe.org/coronavirus.

Other closed schools: 4 more Augusta schools closed due to COVID-19, among 22 in past week

What other schools have gone virtual this semester?

Why were the schools closed?

School district spokesperson Lynthia Ross said the decision is in response to more staff missing work due to COVID-19.

The increase in absences follows a trend of COVID-19 activity increasing after vacations. Surges have followed each summer/winter vacation since 2020. Last week, Richmond County broke records for new cases on several days, according to Georgia Department of Public Health. In the last two weeks, Georgia reported over 220,000 new cases and Richmond County reported 3,423.

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Parents with students attending one of the affected schools learned of the shift from a letter sent home on Thursday. Meals will be available for pickup from the side entrance of school cafeterias on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Since schools reopened after the Christmas holiday break, no public schools in Columbia or Aiken counties have closed in-person learning due to COVID-19.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: COVID causes another 3 Augusta school closures, 18 this week