COVID-19 and staff shortages cause Livingston County schools to cancel classes, go remote
At least three Livingston County schools canceled in-person classes Friday with two opting for remote learning due to COVID-19 cases and staffing shortages.
Classes were canceled Friday for Scranton Middle School students due to a decline in student attendance, according to the Brighton Area Schools' website.
The middle school will conduct remote learning Jan. 18 - 28.
Scranton's student attendance rate has hovered around 75%.
"Scranton had between 12% and 16% of staff absent each day this week. It is better in the other buildings, but staffing challenges (that have been present all year) have been worse during this surge," Brighton Superintendent Matt Outlaw said.
Another Livingston County middle school, Highlander Way, is closed Friday due to staffing constraints and will transition to remote learning next week, with a plan to return to in-person learning on Jan. 24.
Fowlerville Community Schools canceled school Friday due to staffing shortages as "three out of four buildings had unfilled vacancies for various reasons that could not be filled internally with existing staff," said Wayne Roedel, Fowlerville's superintendent.
Students will return in-person learning Tuesday.
Roedel said the student attendance rate ranges from 82-83% in the district's middle school and high school and 86-87% for elementary schools.
"Please note that not all student and staff absences are COVID related. Absences could be the result of many different reasons ... sick family members, medical appointments, death in the family, personal business, etc," he said.
About 412 students in Brighton Area Schools, 511 students in Howell Public Schools and 195 students in Fowlerville Community Schools have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the school year.
Contact Kayla Daugherty at 517-552-2848 or kdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KayDaugherty92.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Several Livingston County schools cancel classes, opt for remote learning
