The following is a press release supplied to The Blade/Emanuel County Live from Superintendent Dr. Kevin Judy on behalf of Emanuel County Schools:
"Dear Parents and Guardians,
The Emanuel County School District wants to inform all of our stakeholders about the status of how our school system is handling the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The Emanuel County Board of Education met in a special called meeting this morning to discuss the situation and information from Governor Brian Kemp's news press conference yesterday afternoon.
The school board agreed that we will not close our schools at this time. There were many factors that went into this decision, which included concerns with our ability to feed students, daycare availability and the potential financial burdens placed upon parents in order to take care of their children if school closes. Based on information from the Department of Health, there are no confirmed cases in COVID-19 in our area, there are no presumptive cases in our area, and there is currently no evidence to indicate community transmission of it in our area. In summary, there is presently no evidence to support closing schools at this time.
Other items agreed on by our board:
Field Trips — All field trips outside of Emanuel County have been cancelled from March 16 through April 3. We will evaluate the continuation of field trips after our spring break.
Athletics — We are currently working with our respective regions to make a decision on future athletic events. Coaches will keep their athletes and parents updated on games. Teams will be allowed to practice locally regardless of game cancellation.
Cleaning — Our school and district staff will continue to keep our schools and buses clean. We have adequate, approved disinfecting supplies for all school locations.
Sickness — Students and employees who are sick should remain home until well (appropriate documentation may be required). Outside Visitors - We will try and limit outside access into our schools from visitors to essential individuals only.
Hygiene Practices — We will continue to stress the importance of proper hygiene practices at home and school, and will stress the importance of social distancing (no handshaking, stand 6 feet apart, don't share items that could be contaminated like cellphones, etc.).
We highly recommend that parents/guardians take the time now to prepare for a potential closure of our schools. This preparation should include daycare and nutritional needs at a minimum. We ask parents to review their spring break plans that may involve travel outside of Emanuel County to areas that are impacted, to minimize the potential contamination upon your child's return to school.
We are aware that the current status of our community can change in a moment. We will readdress any and all issues/actions as new information is provided. We will keep you informed through our district and school Facebook pages, websites, and by other means of communication.
Sincerely,
Dr. Kevin A. Judy, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Emanuel County"
