More than a week has passed since Cincinnati Public Schools returned to in-person learning through a blended model. Since then, six students have tested positive for COVID-19.
This was revealed during a CPS Health and Safety Committee meeting on Thursday, where it was shared that 156 students had to be moved to isolation areas for their safety. This comes at a time where concerns about Hamilton County reaching Level 4 on the Ohio Public Health Advisory System continue to grow.
However, Board Member Eve Bolton said her neighbor told her that their children feel so much safer after returning to school.
“We really do need, somehow, to kind of demonstrate that we’re much safer than the world is - if we are, and I think we are,” Bolton said.
Chief Strategy Officer Sarah Trimble-Oliver said the health data for the region is not trending in the right direction.
“We are in close communication with our health advisory group, watching this data on a daily basis to get their guidance and their recommendations for us on how that may affect our school opening plans,” Trimble-Oliver said.
As of this story being published, the district says 83 CPS employees have contracted COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. Cincinnati has reported more than 6,700 cases. The city’s positivity rate is at 2.7%.
This story data has been updated.
