COVID-positive cases, close exposures rise at Glen Lake School—as vaccine approval for children nears
Glen Lake facilities director Steve Bluhm displays a bipolar ionization filter, which the school installed in its ventilation systems before the 2020-21 school year to reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading inside the building.
From staff reports
Glen Lake School is currently facing its highest COVID-19 positivity rate of the 2021-22 school year. As of Friday, Oct. 29, approximately 10 members of the school, including both students and staff, had tested positive.
Those 10, combined with the number of close contacts who are quarantining at home this week, now total in the high-60s, Glen Lake superintendent Mark Mattson confirmed to the Glen Arbor Sun on Friday.
That’s approximately 8% of the 835 members of the Glen Lake community—including 718 students and 117 staff members.
“For two months we had only single digits out of school,” said Mattson. “We’re hoping it’s a blip on the radar. … We’ll get quite a few students back early- to mid [this] week.”
Mattson added that the COVID spike wasn’t unexpected. The number of those quarantining at home reached the mid-teens just before Labor Day when the school year began. Glen Lake remained in the single digits since September 16.
Vaccine approval for children ages 5-11 years old could come this week. the U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved the Pfizer vaccine last week. The Centers for Disease Control is expected to follow suit this week.
New contract tracing guidelines, which take into account an individual’s COVID vaccination status, allowed Glen Lake to keep another 38 students in school who otherwise may have had to quarantine, Mattson added.
Rapid tests provided Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District have also helped Glen Lake steer through turbulent waters during the global pandemic.
“We do rapid tests in school when students or staff are feeling symptomatic,” said Mattson. “A negative rapid, antigen test keeps them in the building. If they test positive, they do a PCR test while they quarantine.”
