Students in the East Tallahatchie School District returned to school Monday, Jan. 10, while those in the West Tallahatchie School District stayed home.
Starting Friday, Jan. 7, the WTSD switched to virtual learning as COVID-19 cases grew and will continue with remote instruction through this week, with plans to return to in-person learning on Tuesday, Jan. 18.
Schools in both districts will be closed Monday, Jan. 17, for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday.
WTSD Superintendent Dr. Sherry Ellington said the district has had "between 20-75 staff and students either infected or in quarantine" due to COVID-19 at both the R.H. Bearden Elementary School and West Tallahatchie High School campuses, but she said it was "not enough to label it as an outbreak."
"We switched to virtual learning because of an increase in the number of cases," Ellington explained, noting that the district took into account "the CDC's recommendation regarding the length of quarantine."
In the ETSD, students were scheduled to return Jan. 6 from the Christmas and New Year's holidays, but the district delayed the start until Monday, Jan. 10, citing weather concerns.
ETSD Superintendent Johnnie Vick said the district "plans to continue with in-person class instruction" and is taking precautions, such as partnering with the Mississippi State Department of Health and its authorized representative, Maverick Health LLC, to offer free, voluntary school-based COVID-19 rapid antigen tests.
"We will monitor the situation very carefully as our students return ... and will be ready to make any adjustments for our students' safety," Vick added.
In a news release issued Friday, University of Mississippi Medical Center pediatric experts and leaders from the state’s largest pediatrician group encouraged parents to protect children from COVID-19 by utilizing face masks and, where possible, vaccination.
“In the past two weeks, the number of children hospitalized at Children’s of Mississippi because of COVID-19 has tripled,” said Dr. Mary Taylor, Suzan B. Thames Chair and professor of pediatrics at UMMC in Jackson. “We know the importance of in-person learning for children and want schools to be open safely. We encourage parents to have their children wear face masks when in school or in public and to get their children vaccinated against COVID-19.”
Dr. April Palmer, professor and chief of pediatric infectious diseases at UMMC, said most of the children admitted for COVID-19 are either unvaccinated or younger than 5 years old and don't quality for vaccination.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends vaccination against COVID-19 for children who are eligible.
Last week, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention authorized COVID-19 booster shots for those ages 12 to 15. Pfizer-BioNTech vaccinations are available for children ages 5 to 11 at a lower dose. The vaccine was made available to ages 12 to 15 through an emergency use authorization in May.
The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine has been shown to be nearly 91% effective in preventing COVID-19 in children ages 5 to 11.
“Vaccinations have been proven to be safe and effective in reducing the risk of contracting COVID-19 and making any breakthrough infections less severe,” said Dr. Charlotte Hobbs, professor of pediatric infectious diseases at UMMC. “It’s important to protect children from becoming infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus since we have fewer monoclonal antibodies options since some of them are not effective against the Omicron variant.”
In the UMMC news release, Dr. Anita Henderson, president of the Mississippi Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a pediatrician at the Hattiesburg Clinic, was quoted as saying that parents should encourage their children ages 2 and older to wear face masks when in school, day care or in public.
Face masks are not recommended for children younger than 2.
“With the number of new cases of COVID-19 rising, it’s vital to keep children as safe as possible while they are learning,” Henderson said. “This means wearing face masks for in-person school and day care and vaccinations for children as well as other family members. This is our best chance to prevent COVID-19 infections while keeping schools open.”
Annie Oeth, of UMMC Communications and Marketing, contributed to this story.
