PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT NEWS

55 staff members, 18 students tested positive

The Public Education Department on Oct. 26 announced 73 new positive cases of COVID-19 in the last 72 hours. Rapid response has been initiated, and all pertinent information has been verified with the schools and school districts. The following new cases have been reported:

§  Fifteen cases in Bernalillo County. Eight of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 7, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 22. Seven of infected individuals are students who were last on campus Oct. 15 (two individuals) and 21 (five individuals). All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

 §  Seven cases in Chaves County. Five of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 15, 16, 19, 21 and 22. Two of the infected individuals are students who were last on school property Oct. 15 and Oct. 16. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  Five cases in Curry County. Four of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 16, 19 (two individuals) and 23. The other is a student who was last on school property Oct. 15. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive cases.

§      Ten cases in Dona Ana County. All 10 infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Sept. 30, Oct. 9, 16 (four individuals), 19 and 20 (three individuals). All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  Six cases in Eddy County. All six of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 19 (two individuals) and Oct. 20 (four individuals). All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  One case in Lea County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on school property Oct. 13. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive case.

§  One case in Lincoln County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on school property Oct. 15. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive case.

§  Four cases in Luna County. All four of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on campus Oct. 12, 14, 19 and 20. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  Four cases in McKinley County. Two of the infected individuals are students who were last on campus Oct. 22. The other two are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 16 and 19. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  One case in Rio Arriba County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on campus Oct. 15. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive case.

§  One case in Roosevelt County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on campus Oct. 16. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive case.

§  Six cases in Sandoval County. Three of the infected individuals are students who were last on school property Oct. 15, 16 and 20. The other three infected individuals are staff members who were last on campus Oct. 15, 22 and 23. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  Two cases in Santa Fe County. Both infected individuals are staff members who were last on campus Oct. 13 and 16. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  Four cases in San Juan County. Two of the infected individuals are staff members who were last on school property Oct. 21 and 22. The other two are students who were last on campus Oct. 16. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  One case in Sierra County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on campus Oct. 20. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive case.

§  Two cases in Taos County. Both infected individuals are staff members who were last on campus Oct. 14 and Oct. 21. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

§  One case in Torrance County. The infected individual is a staff member who was last on school property Oct. 23. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected school have been notified of the positive case.

§  Two cases in Valencia County. Both infected individuals are students who were last on campus Oct. 14 and Oct. 20. All staff members and the parents and guardians of all students in the affected schools have been notified of the positive cases.

All “close contacts” will be informed of the positive case(s) and instructed to quarantine for 14 days. Affected classrooms and facilities will be cleaned and disinfected. Staff must be tested if symptomatic or a “close contact;” however, staff members will not be required to present a negative test result in order to return to work. Symptomatic staff may return to work after 10 days plus 24 hours after the fever is gone and COVID-19 symptoms have improved. Asymptomatic staff who have been “close contacts” may return to work after a 14-day quarantine.

The PED has collected this data since Aug. 17; since then, 602 total cases have been reported in 294 schools, including 405 staff members and 197 students. 

Since schools began operating in the hybrid mode on Sept. 8, a total of 534 cases have been reported in 271 schools, including 355 staff members and 179 students.

New Mexico’s Public Education Department rapid response team has removed duplicate records in case counts as of Oct. 19, and as a result, the cumulative case count has been reduced. In addition, New Mexico’s Department of Health has advised the PED to cancel certain cases previously reported because of insufficient details.

For additional information about COVID-19 safety in schools, please visit: https://bit.ly/SafeSchoolsNM.