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The Chambers County School District announced in a press release W.F. Burns Middle School plans to transition to virtual learning for both Thursday and Friday, Oct. 13 and 14 due to a cold and flu outbreak at the school.

CCSD says it has been working with the lead nurse, school administrators, and school nurses to closely monitor this cold and flu outbreak that has impacted some schools across Chambers County.  The past two days have seen the numbers at W.F. Burns Middle School consistently hover near 34% of the students out with an illness.  Today’s numbers saw 172 students out of 521 out of school with this sickness or 33% of the students absent.

“It is our desire to focus on the health and safety of our students and staff and It is our hope that this brief transition to a virtual learning model at W.F. Burns will give us the opportunity to see the virus subside at the middle school with the extended break from campus,” the release said.  “The two virtual learning days will only be for W.F. Burns Middle School.   The administration and staff at W.F. Burns will plan for virtual classes and office hours for their students to take place on both Thursday and Friday.”

The CCSD is using all options to help reduce the recent surge of illnesses among both students and staff at WFB in order to reduce the spread of cold and flu amongst our students.  In order to help reduce the spread of illness, these next steps will include the following:

• Promoting hand hygiene for both students and staff. (This would include stocking all hand sanitizer stations with adequate supplies and ensuring that stations are in the lunchroom and other vital areas for students to use).
• School nurses will be collecting information on confirmed cases of flu for both students and staff.
• Share reminders with both staff and students on flu-symptom recognition to reduce spread.
• Symptoms include fever + 100, headache, fatigue, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, diarrhea or vomiting.
• Encouraging ill students to remain at home to ensure they are symptom-free before returning to school.
• Custodial staff will ensure that restrooms are stocked with soap with paper towels or working hand dryers.
• Custodial staff and faculty will be supplied with wipes or disinfectant to ensure that frequently touched surfaces are being sanitized to reduce transmission.
• Custodial staff will be encouraged to utilize disinfectant foggers in classrooms after dismissal to provide extra protection for sanitizing classrooms to prevent the spread of transmission.

Next week, CCSD will be on fall break beginning Monday, Oct. 17, and Tuesday, Oct. 18, with students returning to campuses on Wednesday, Oct. 19.