Education

Concord middle school closed due to COVID outbreak

“Clearly, exposure at school played a role.”

A used rapid antigen test showing a positive test result for COVID-19. ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images

March 18, 2022

1 minute to read

A middle school in Concord is closed Friday in response to an outbreak of COVID-19 cases.

The school district had been monitoring the increase in cases in the sixth grade at Peabody Middle School and moved to close the school after the total number of cases in the building rose to 44 by Thursday, Laurie Hunter, the district’s superintendent, said in a letter to parents.

All other schools in the district continue to have “low COVID counts,” she said.

“In addition to the COVID cases, we have been carefully watching attendance rates as well,” Hunter wrote. “There are small upticks or no changes in the K-5 schools, Sanborn, and [Concord-Carlisle High School]. [On Thursday], we faced a 30% absentee rate at Peabody. Regardless of what illness (i.e. flu, or stomach virus) caused that rate, we would be reviewing where we are at and what makes sense next.”

Hunter said closing the school on Friday will allow for ill students to recover, the building to be cleaned, “instruction to occur consistently, and to reduce any remaining virus transmission.”

“We would react the same if it were a flu or stomach virus outbreak that grew to this extent,” she wrote.

According to the district, all students and staff who have tested positive are experiencing “mild flu-like symptoms.” The district has provided all sixth-grade students and staff with at-home antigen tests to test at home on Monday morning or if they develop symptoms.

The expectation is that all schools will be “fully operational” on Monday.

“Clearly, exposure at school played a role,” Hunter wrote. “We will continue to work with health officials and DESE to determine any other necessary mitigation steps.”

Massachusetts has seen a drop in COVID-19 cases statewide, which has prompted most communities to drop pandemic mask restrictions in public spaces and in schools.

Public health experts have been urging leaders to continue to invest in pandemic preparedness despite the drop in cases, warning that new variants and surges can still arise. Currently, experts are eyeing the uptick in cases in Europe, apparently driven by the variant BA.2, also referred to as “stealth omicron.”