How many COVID-19 cases have Beaufort Co. schools seen since starting hybrid classes?
Since resuming face-to-face classes on Oct. 5, four Beaufort County schools have reported five new COVID-19 cases, district officials said Wednesday.
Three of the new cases are hybrid students: Two at Hilton Head Island High School and one at H.E. McCracken Middle School.
The remaining two are virtual students: One at Beaufort High School and one at Whale Branch Early College High School.
“Not all of the hybrid students had been on school grounds around the time of diagnosis,” district spokeswoman Candace Bruder said. “However, for those hybrid students who were on campus, close-contacts have been notified accordingly.”
The district defines close contacts as individuals who have been within six feet of an infected individual for 15 or more minutes, Bruder said.
The district does not send schoolwide notifications for new cases among virtual students who have not been on school grounds, but does for hybrid students.
According to Bruder, none of the cases reported since Oct. 5 has resulted in a widespread quarantine.
Currently, the district is using a hybrid model of instruction, where students can opt in to take classes at their school buildings two days per week and online three days per week.
Approximately 60% of the district’s 22,000-plus students opted for hybrid instruction, while the remaining 40% chose to remain completely online.
The hybrid model began Oct. 5, and superintendent Frank Rodriguez said in September he would like to spend “at least four weeks” in the hybrid model before transitioning to five days a week of in-person classes for students.
Prior to the start of hybrid classes, four district high schools — Hilton Head Island, Bluffton, May River and Beaufort High — reported widespread quarantines stemming from extracurriculars, with approximately 200 people asked to quarantine as a result.
And between Sept. 30 and Oct. 5, the week leading up to the district’s hybrid start, six Hilton Head Island High School students tested positive for the virus or started showing symptoms, leading another five students to quarantine as close contacts.
Between Sept. 1 and Sept. 25, the district reported 16 COVID-19 cases at nine district schools:
One Beaufort charter school also reported cases last week: Two staff members at Bridges Preparatory School tested positive for COVID-19, according to chief executive officer Gary McCulloch.
Okatie’s John Paul II Catholic School reported two student cases between Aug. 17-21, according to the Jasper County Sun-Times. Those cases were added to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control’s school-by-school database last week.
This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 3:51 PM.