MELVERN, Kan. – As Osage County enters the second week of the final phase of its pandemic reopening plan, another school district in the county has temporarily halted summer sports activities after a group of students was possibly exposed to a COVID-19 infected individual.
USD 456 Marais des Cygnes Valley School District announced this afternoon, Saturday, July 11, 2020, administrators had been made aware today that a group of students was exposed to an individual outside the school district who later tested positive for COVID-19.
“Out of an abundance of caution, all summer conditioning/workouts have been postponed until Thursday, July 16, 2020. By that time, county health departments will have had the opportunity to perform contact tracing, fully inform the individuals involved and more conclusive information will be available to make potential further decisions. We appreciate your understanding and will continue to keep you updated as much as possible,” USD 456’s statement in a social media post said.
The district later noted drivers education and primary summer school will continue as scheduled.
Last week, USD 434 Santa Fe Trail announced activities at Santa Fe Trail High School, specifically summer weights and conditioning, would be postponed until Monday, July 13, due to possible exposure of student athletes to a person who was infected. The Osage County Health Department later reported a new positive case might have affected an athletic team in the county.
USD 434 provided guidelines for students who plan to resume activities Monday: Maintain six feet of separation, and masks and diligent handwashing encouraged. USD 434 students will undergo symptom and temperature checks by staff members.
USD 434’s latest update noted: “Your student should not attend if they have someone positive in the household, a pending COVID-19 test, have COVID-19 symptoms or fever in the last 72 hours, have known exposure, or have been quarantined.
“According to the CDC, COVID-19 symptoms include fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headaches, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, or diarrhea.”
At the time of this post, the health department had not yet publicly confirmed the possible contacts at Marais des Cygnes Valley schools.
