BEATTYVILLE, Ky. (LEX 18) — The superintendent of Lee County Schools told parents over the weekend they would have schools closed Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday after positive because of positive COVID-19 tests and quarantines.
"I just didn't have enough staff at my elementary school to be able to cover classes," said Superintendent Sarah Wasson.
She posted to Facebook over the weekend to say there were students and staff who tested positive for COVID-19. Several others were asked to quarantine because of that.
"This was to be expected, getting students all back together in confined spaces," said public health director Scott Lockard. "We were expecting this actually to occur."
According to state data, about 42 percent of Lee County residents are vaccinated. Wasson says some of the positive tests among staff included those where were both vaccinated and unvaccinated. Still, the goal is to keep the school year going on Thursday.
"We certainly intend to be back in," Wasson said. "We don't hope that this is a trend. But I know districts are struggling and will struggle across the state this year with quarantines."
Lockard says one of the best ways to prevent more school closings like this throughout the year is to take action to protect yourself and the community.
"The more people we get vaccinated, the less likely we will have to put school on hold," he said. "We are still going to have individuals who test positive, we may have a class we need to quarantine.
As they continue to wait for more results to come in, Wasson says the goal is to keep the school year going as it was planned.
"It's possible that we may have to stay out if more staff are reporting positives, but we'll get back in as soon as possible and then be stronger going forward," Wasson said.
