St. Joseph High School students will return to campus Tuesday after a two-week timeout due to what initially was one student testing positive for COVID-19.
Principal Erinn Dougherty said the return to school would occur Tuesday, ending the two weeks of distance-learning classes. That temporary closure occurred two weeks after the school allowed students to return to campus.
The Orcutt students will have only four days on campus before getting a week off for Thanksgiving break, Nov. 23-27
Dougherty also announced that school athlete workouts will be delayed, with outdoor sports workouts set to resume Nov. 23.
However, athletes for indoor sports programs will have to wait until Nov. 30 due to a previously planned replacement of the floor in the school’s gymnasium.
While confirming the return-to-school date, the principal also reminded parents and students to take precautions and remain in quarantine if there has been a close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.
A close contact is defined as being more than 10 minutes and within 6 feet of someone who tested positive for COVID. After a close contact, someone should plan to be in quarantine for at least 14 days.
Students who tested positive or decided against testing after an exposure can return to school when the student isolates for at least 10 days from the onset of symptoms, and has no new symptoms and no fever for at least 24 hours.
After learning one student tested positive, St. Joseph administrators decided to close for two weeks to ensure they had a say when the campus would reopen.
After three or more positive COVID-19 tests, state and county health leaders would step in to decide on a reopening plans.
“We closed on our own so we were able to determine when we reopened, but we did have more than three cases so having more than three cases meant we had guidance from Santa Barbara County of how to communicate with everybody coming back,” she said last week.
The Catholic school’s shutdown has been linked to an exposure tied to a large Halloween party where Righetti High School students also attended.
Quoting her own mother’s philosophy, Dougherty said, “What goes on in the family stays in the family.”
The COVID exposure and shutdown prompted some people to level blame, which the principal tried to quell.
“I don’t think that’s who we are as a family …” she said. “I don’t think at this point I don’t feel that blame is an appropriate strategy. I feel like we love each other. We support each other, and we move forward as a family.”
She added that any conversation administrators have had with students or parents regarding the situation remains confidential.
County Public Health Department officials have called for people to wear masks, stop gathering, and maintain social distancing as the holiday season arrives.
Four parties on Halloween weekend involving high school students led to 20 confirmed student cases, Public Health Director Van Do-Reynoso said.
Eleven of those 20 cases have been linked to St. Joseph High School.
In the span of one week, officials reported the number of cases due to Halloween parties went from two to 20.
“I do believe that this is just the tip of the iceberg,” she said, wondering how many asymptomatic students have coronavirus but did not get tested and unknowingly spread COVID-19.
Righetti sports also were affected by the cases, but the school has remained in remote-learning status since the start of the school year.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.