PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — At least five city schools and the ninth grade at Roxborough High have temporarily shifted to virtual learning because of COVID-19 outbreaks.
The decision to close individual schools is based on the Philadelphia Department of Public Health’s coronavirus guidelines. Students or staff, as well as close contacts, are advised to quarantine if there are one or two positive test results.
Three positive tests in the same grade — even if they are in different classrooms — can trigger virtual learning for the entire grade.
“That number three matches up with what the CDC calls a cluster,” said health department spokesperson Jim Garrow. “When there’s a cluster of cases in a cohort, that’s when we’ll pause that learning.”
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Six cases in a school over a 14-day period would prompt the temporary closure of the entire school building, Garrow said.
“When you have multiple clusters in a school, or six cases, really spread throughout the school, that’s when we start to worry that there is an increased chance for in-school spread,” he explained, “and we’ll pause the entire school at that point.”
The current guideline that would prompt a school closure is six cases, regardless of the size of the school.
Parents are notified that their child was exposed to someone who tested positive, but privacy rules prohibit further identification.
The school district tests students for COVID-19 if they show symptoms, but the teachers union endorses regular student screening.
Garrow said the city believes adding hundreds of thousands of tests could overburden the system. He said it’s best to focus testing on those who are at the highest risk of being positive.
The district provides periodic updates of COVID-19 cases on its online dashboard. As of Friday afternoon, the Emlen, Richmond and Southwark schools, the ninth grade at Roxborough High School, and the Lindley Academy and Pan American Academy charter schools have shifted to virtual learning because of COVID-19 outbreaks.