By Richard Kaufman
Greenwich Public Schools recorded a milestone earlier this week, as they surpassed the 100-mark for COVID-19 cases since school began in September.
According to an update from the district, on Tuesday Dec. 1, there have been 110 COVID-19 cases between students, faculty and staff over the past three months.
However, there are currently just 17 active cases in the district, affecting nine schools: Greenwich High School, Eastern Middle School, Western Middle School, ISD, Cos Cob, Glenville, New Lebanon, North Street and Riverside Schools.
Of the 110 cases, 90 students have been infected, along with nine service providers, eight teachers, two non-teaching staff, and one administrator.
Just one of the cases has been attributed to exposure within schools, and 95 have been linked to outside activities. Fourteen cases are due to “undetermined exposure” or “community spread.”
“This seems to prove that our systems and guidelines are working and our schools are remaining safe for students and staff,” said GPS spokesperson, Jonathan Supranowitz.
The surge in cases across Connecticut can partially be traced to non-school sponsored athletics. In Greenwich, in particular, of the 11 total positive cases reported at Eastern Middle School, eight can be traced back to non-school sponsored sports.
To that end, Gov. Ned Lamont recently issued an Executive Order that limits athletic participation on playing fields to no more than four people. First Selectman Fred Camillo made the decision last week to close all public playing fields in town, including those at Greenwich High School. Parks, trails, and tracks remain open.
“Prior to [Tuesday], we recorded three consecutive updates with decreasing positive cases that we attribute to the halting of sports in the state,” Supranowitz said.
He added that the district remains “hopeful” following Thanksgiving that there won’t be a surge in cases. The next update is expected on Friday, Dec. 4.
“Prior to the break, we reminded all GPS families about Governor Lamont’s executive order regarding out-of-state travel, and after the holiday continued to do our contract tracing procedures and communication efforts to parents,” Supranowitz said.
Additionally, according to Tuesday’s update, the district has made 1,196 phone calls as part of contact tracing since Oct. 1. There have been 246 reported student negative tests over the same timeframe, and 93 cases have been resolved.
