PGCPS list of schools that have COVID cases

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The number of cases in my kids 8th grade cohort makes me think that it wasn't just community spread and that they were getting exposed at school. Can't say if it was kid to kid or teacher to kid but I am fairly confident that they were exposed to Covid at school.
My kids is in a specialty program with about 120 kids in the grade. At least 10 of the kids in that cohort tested positive in less than a week. At least half (probably more) were fully vaccinated. I am friends with 2 of the parents and those families are very cautious and the kids are masked all the time. The parents think the kids were exposed at lunch.

When they changed the criteria for quarantining, there was no way they could keep the schools staffed because even vaccinated teachers had to quarantine if they were in close contact.

That said, I think that PGCPS could have kept younger kids in school who seem to be less impacted by Covid(K-3rd) and are known to really struggle with online learning.

But I don't know what Dr Goldson was seeing. She is a very thoughtful person and wouldn't have done it unless she was being advised by experts to do so.

What we need is for the people in power to make the hard call and mandate vaccinations for all students. It wouldn't completely end infections but it would certainly slow things down. FDA also needs to get booster shots approved for the 12-15 year olds.

I think I live in the same town as you. My high school child has been hearing of TONS of classmates testing positive for COVID this past week. It very likely was spreading during lunch; certainly also on the bus and sure, maybe in the classroom too. If someone was infected, it would be very easy to spread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where can I find the number of cases each school has reported in PGCPS?

As far as I know they haven't been sharing that information; just the fact THAT a case was found at school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The number of cases in my kids 8th grade cohort makes me think that it wasn't just community spread and that they were getting exposed at school. Can't say if it was kid to kid or teacher to kid but I am fairly confident that they were exposed to Covid at school.
My kids is in a specialty program with about 120 kids in the grade. At least 10 of the kids in that cohort tested positive in less than a week. At least half (probably more) were fully vaccinated. I am friends with 2 of the parents and those families are very cautious and the kids are masked all the time. The parents think the kids were exposed at lunch.

When they changed the criteria for quarantining, there was no way they could keep the schools staffed because even vaccinated teachers had to quarantine if they were in close contact.

That said, I think that PGCPS could have kept younger kids in school who seem to be less impacted by Covid(K-3rd) and are known to really struggle with online learning.

But I don't know what Dr Goldson was seeing. She is a very thoughtful person and wouldn't have done it unless she was being advised by experts to do so.

What we need is for the people in power to make the hard call and mandate vaccinations for all students. It wouldn't completely end infections but it would certainly slow things down. FDA also needs to get booster shots approved for the 12-15 year olds.

From WTOP:
Dr. Monica Goldson, the school system’s CEO, revealed that 994 students and 261 teacher’s have tested positive for the virus in the past week.

That resulted in county schools placing approximately 16,778 students and 492 staff members in quarantine.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The number of cases in my kids 8th grade cohort makes me think that it wasn't just community spread and that they were getting exposed at school. Can't say if it was kid to kid or teacher to kid but I am fairly confident that they were exposed to Covid at school.
My kids is in a specialty program with about 120 kids in the grade. At least 10 of the kids in that cohort tested positive in less than a week. At least half (probably more) were fully vaccinated. I am friends with 2 of the parents and those families are very cautious and the kids are masked all the time. The parents think the kids were exposed at lunch.

When they changed the criteria for quarantining, there was no way they could keep the schools staffed because even vaccinated teachers had to quarantine if they were in close contact.

That said, I think that PGCPS could have kept younger kids in school who seem to be less impacted by Covid(K-3rd) and are known to really struggle with online learning.

But I don't know what Dr Goldson was seeing. She is a very thoughtful person and wouldn't have done it unless she was being advised by experts to do so.

What we need is for the people in power to make the hard call and mandate vaccinations for all students. It wouldn't completely end infections but it would certainly slow things down. FDA also needs to get booster shots approved for the 12-15 year olds.

From WTOP:
Dr. Monica Goldson, the school system’s CEO, revealed that 994 students and 261 teacher’s have tested positive for the virus in the past week.

That resulted in county schools placing approximately 16,778 students and 492 staff members in quarantine.

My first question is: Are they quarantining vaccinated students?
My follow-on question is: If they are, why are so many students and staff unvaccinated/boosted?

PG county may have high numbers but if they are quarantining regardless of vaccination status, the numbers aren't comparable to other area counties which aren't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The number of cases in my kids 8th grade cohort makes me think that it wasn't just community spread and that they were getting exposed at school. Can't say if it was kid to kid or teacher to kid but I am fairly confident that they were exposed to Covid at school.
My kids is in a specialty program with about 120 kids in the grade. At least 10 of the kids in that cohort tested positive in less than a week. At least half (probably more) were fully vaccinated. I am friends with 2 of the parents and those families are very cautious and the kids are masked all the time. The parents think the kids were exposed at lunch.

When they changed the criteria for quarantining, there was no way they could keep the schools staffed because even vaccinated teachers had to quarantine if they were in close contact.

That said, I think that PGCPS could have kept younger kids in school who seem to be less impacted by Covid(K-3rd) and are known to really struggle with online learning.

But I don't know what Dr Goldson was seeing. She is a very thoughtful person and wouldn't have done it unless she was being advised by experts to do so.

What we need is for the people in power to make the hard call and mandate vaccinations for all students. It wouldn't completely end infections but it would certainly slow things down. FDA also needs to get booster shots approved for the 12-15 year olds.

From WTOP:
Dr. Monica Goldson, the school system’s CEO, revealed that 994 students and 261 teacher’s have tested positive for the virus in the past week.

That resulted in county schools placing approximately 16,778 students and 492 staff members in quarantine.

My first question is: Are they quarantining vaccinated students?
My follow-on question is: If they are, why are so many students and staff unvaccinated/boosted?

PG county may have high numbers but if they are quarantining regardless of vaccination status, the numbers aren't comparable to other area counties which aren't.

I am a teacher in PGCPS. They are not quarantining students or staff that are vaccinated and not showing symptoms. As far as why are so many students and staff not vaccinated, that is because it is a choice. In addition, we have no clue who is or isn’t vaccinated. It is not necessary to report it. Speaking for my school only, a lot of grade levels went into quarantine unnecessarily. It was to the point that no one was in school except two grade levels. Staying home until the 18th does nothing. There is no additional cleaning in the building. No additional vaccination appointments being available (pretty hard to find an open appointment right now). No requirement to get vaccinated or boosted, no incentive for it to encourage people to get it. Just pointless. Students are already so far behind. I am talking grade levels behind. A month truly makes a difference. Sorry but this was the wrong call in my eyes.

[Anonymous]

Our PGCPS high school is telling vaccinated and unvaccinated students the same thing about quarantine.

Here's the close contact letter my child received last week:

Dear Staff/Parent
This letter is to inform you that more than one individual within a classroom at Eleanor Roosevelt HS has tested positive for COVID-19.

● Staff Notification:
You have been identified as someone who has been in close contact with at least one of the individuals that tested positive for COVID-19.

● Parent Notification:
Your child has been identified as someone who has been in close contact with at least one of the individuals that tested positive for COVID-19.

Close Contact is defined as anyone who was within 3 feet or less in the classroom or and within 6 feet or less in all areas outside the classroom, including cafeteria, hallways, bus etc. for greater than 15 minutes or more regardless of mask use. This also includes individuals participating in extracurricular team/group events.

Based on the current guidance, if you are:

● Asymptomatic individuals will need to
○ Quarantine (remain at home) for 10 days and may return to the school building on day 11 unless otherwise directed by the Prince George’s County Health Department.
○ 7-Day Quarantine can be utilized if all the following criteria are met: Maintain strict adherence to ALL mitigation strategies, daily symptom monitoring continues through day 14, and the person
remains asymptomatic the entire duration of quarantine. The school must receive proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test that was obtained on day 5 or later of quarantine. Proof of the
negative PCR test must be given to the school nurse or principal on or before the day of return to the building.

● Symptomatic individuals will need to quarantine for 10 days if you develop symptoms (listed below):
Individuals will not be allowed to return to the building until symptoms have resolved, and they have been cleared by their primary healthcare provider. If these criteria have been satisfied, you may return to the school building. You should also:
○ Obtain a PCR test (notify school of the result)
○ Contact PG Health Department to get clearance to return to the building by calling 301-941-3277

The symptoms of COVID-19 include any ONE of the following: fever of 100.4 or higher, sore throat, cough, difficulty breathing, diarrhea, vomiting, new onset of severe headache (especially with fever), new loss of taste or new loss of smell. For persons with chronic conditions such as asthma, the symptoms should represent a change from baseline. For persons with chronic conditions such as asthma, the symptoms should represent a change from baseline. We encourage you to seek advice from a healthcare professional if you have concerns about this exposure to COVID-19. If you do not have a healthcare provider, please contact the Prince George’s County Health Department at 301-883-6627 or go online to find more information on free, county-run test sites.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our PGCPS high school is telling vaccinated and unvaccinated students the same thing about quarantine.

Here's the close contact letter my child received last week:

Dear Staff/Parent
This letter is to inform you that more than one individual within a classroom at Eleanor Roosevelt HS has tested positive for COVID-19.

● Staff Notification:
You have been identified as someone who has been in close contact with at least one of the individuals that tested positive for COVID-19.

● Parent Notification:
Your child has been identified as someone who has been in close contact with at least one of the individuals that tested positive for COVID-19.

Close Contact is defined as anyone who was within 3 feet or less in the classroom or and within 6 feet or less in all areas outside the classroom, including cafeteria, hallways, bus etc. for greater than 15 minutes or more regardless of mask use. This also includes individuals participating in extracurricular team/group events.

Based on the current guidance, if you are:

● Asymptomatic individuals will need to
○ Quarantine (remain at home) for 10 days and may return to the school building on day 11 unless otherwise directed by the Prince George’s County Health Department.
○ 7-Day Quarantine can be utilized if all the following criteria are met: Maintain strict adherence to ALL mitigation strategies, daily symptom monitoring continues through day 14, and the person
remains asymptomatic the entire duration of quarantine. The school must receive proof of a negative COVID-19 PCR test that was obtained on day 5 or later of quarantine. Proof of the
negative PCR test must be given to the school nurse or principal on or before the day of return to the building.

● Symptomatic individuals will need to quarantine for 10 days if you develop symptoms (listed below):
Individuals will not be allowed to return to the building until symptoms have resolved, and they have been cleared by their primary healthcare provider. If these criteria have been satisfied, you may return to the school building. You should also:
○ Obtain a PCR test (notify school of the result)
○ Contact PG Health Department to get clearance to return to the building by calling 301-941-3277

The symptoms of COVID-19 include any ONE of the following: fever of 100.4 or higher, sore throat, cough, difficulty breathing, diarrhea, vomiting, new onset of severe headache (especially with fever), new loss of taste or new loss of smell. For persons with chronic conditions such as asthma, the symptoms should represent a change from baseline. For persons with chronic conditions such as asthma, the symptoms should represent a change from baseline. We encourage you to seek advice from a healthcare professional if you have concerns about this exposure to COVID-19. If you do not have a healthcare provider, please contact the Prince George’s County Health Department at 301-883-6627 or go online to find more information on free, county-run test sites.

+1000 - THIS

You are quarantining students in PG county who are vaccinated. Of course the quarantine rates are double that of other counties.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
You are quarantining students in PG county who are vaccinated. Of course the quarantine rates are double that of other counties.

Clarification:

Quarantining vaccinated close contacts is a new policy, ordered by the county health department, that only started Dec. 15th, and the policy was only in effect IF your school already was identified as an "outbreak" school (school with a certain number of cases)

Other wise the former policy was and remains. "Fully vaccinated students and employees without symptoms do not need to quarantine unless they test positive. They should get tested five days after exposure regardless of symptoms and wear a mask for 14 days."

https://www.pgcps.org/coronavirus/resources/quarantine-and-testing

[Anonymous]

So for example, in the case where eight 4th grade students in the same homeroom all tested positive for COVID the same day (some vaccinated, some not vaccinated) -- ALL the students in that homeroom were sent home to quarantine, not just the unvaccinated ones. That's because clearly the unvaccinated ones also were getting the disease and because the school was in "outbreak" status,

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So for example, in the case where eight 4th grade students in the same homeroom all tested positive for COVID the same day (some vaccinated, some not vaccinated) -- ALL the students in that homeroom were sent home to quarantine, not just the unvaccinated ones. That's because clearly the unvaccinated ones also were getting the disease and because the school was in "outbreak" status,

Correct, this is exactly what happened in my child's 8th grade class last Friday morning. 3 kids in the class tested positive in a 48 hour period and at least 1 was fully vaccinated. Since then at least 6 other kids (5 vaccinated) tested positive.

[Anonymous]

With the amount of families sick in our area right now, I am very glad schools went to virtual when they did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:With the amount of families sick in our area right now, I am very glad schools went to virtual when they did.

I wish they’d gone 1-2 days earlier, as my kid must have gotten it right at the end. He’s so bummed about missing and being the cause of cancelled Christmas plans. Not his fault, but it was so sad to see him fighting back tears.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:With the amount of families sick in our area right now, I am very glad schools went to virtual when they did.

I wish they’d gone 1-2 days earlier, as my kid must have gotten it right at the end. He’s so bummed about missing and being the cause of cancelled Christmas plans. Not his fault, but it was so sad to see him fighting back tears.

This is a case where hindsight is 20:20 for sure. PGCPS was under a lot of pressure and I'm sure that they were getting all sorts of data in at once.