MERIDIAN, Idaho — Only two weeks into the school year, a Meridian charter school has been forced to shut down as COVID-19 spreads through the school.
Compass Charter School informed parents on Monday that the school will close for a week in an attempt to get a handle on the virus.
"Unfortunately, we have had a lot of students attending school who either have symptoms of illness or have family members at home who have COVID symptoms," school officials wrote in a letter. "This has resulted in a substantial spread within our Compass community which according to our Safe Return to School Plan requires us to implement additional mitigation measures."
Administrators have not released how many students and staff members have tested positive for the illness.
The school announced a "temporary instructional pause" from Aug. 31 to Sept. 6, with all classes and extracurricular activities canceled. The school will be deep-cleaned and sanitized that week, and students, staff and visitors will not be allowed inside.
There will be no Zoom classes or scheduled meetings between teachers and students during the weeklong closure, administrators said, although kids can continue to work on any assignments they have from home.
"Please treat this like a quarantine and watch for symptoms of illness," school leaders wrote.
The first day of classes was Aug. 16. Like many other schools and school districts around the region, Compass Charter School does not require students or staff to wear masks.
Teachers and students will be "encouraged" to wear a face covering when classes resume Sept. 7, but masks will not be mandatory. Returning students will be asked to use sanitizer or wash their hands with soap and water before entering the school.
Parents are asked to check for symptoms at home and keep their kids out of class if they or anyone in the household has a sore throat, runny nose, a headache, cough, chills or body aches, or fatigue.
"After this temporary instructional pause, we are hopeful these additional mitigation measures will allow us to resume in-person instruction moving forward as we know this is what is best for kids," the letter reads.
At KTVB, we’re focusing our news coverage on the facts and not the fear around the virus. To see our full coverage, visit our coronavirus section, here: www.ktvb.com/coronavirus.
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