Leechburg Area goes to all remote learning for next two weeks in response to covid-19 surge

Leechburg Area School District will reinstate fully remote learning over the next two weeks in response to rising covid-19 cases, Superintendent Tiffany Nix said Wednesday in an email to district parents.

Students have been attending school in person every day except Wednesdays, when they attend virtually.

Leechburg Area students live in Westmoreland and Armstrong counties — both of which are deemed by the state Department of Health to have a “substantial” risk of covid-19 transmission. A county with a “substantial” risk level has an average incidence rate of more than 100 cases per 100,000 people for a span of seven days.

According to state data, the rate in Armstrong County is 295 cases per 100,000 people. In Westmoreland County, the rate is 144 per 100,000 residents.

The district this week also reported two positive covid-19 cases, one of whom is a student in grades 7-12. The other is a staff member at the high school, Nix said.

“In light of the rising covid-19 numbers in our area, two positive cases this week, and the upcoming Thanksgiving break with family gatherings, we have made the very difficult decision to change our model of education,” Nix said. “This is not an easy decision and not one that I had wanted to make. I asked the school board to do this, so please be upset with me and not them.”

The state Department of Health recommends schools in counties with a “substantial” risk level move to fully remote learning. Nix said the school board gave her verbal permission to make the change Wednesday because as they don’t meet again until Dec. 2.

“This decision forces families to find child care for three extra days, but the purpose of this extended virtual model is to allow time for students to quarantine before and after Thanksgiving in hopes that anyone with the virus, knowingly or unknowingly, won’t spread it,” Nix said.

Nix on Thursday announced all extracurricular activities, including winter sports and the high school musical, will be delayed until Monday, Dec. 7 — the day students will return to the classroom.

“Mr. Rodgers will be working with the musical producer to reschedule this event. Our athletic director will be working to reschedule athletic practices and competitions,” Nix said.

The remote learning days will be:

• Monday, Nov. 23

• Tuesday, Dec. 1

• Wednesday, Dec. 2 (students are already taught virtually on Wednesdays)

• Thursday, Dec. 3

• Friday, Dec. 4

Students already were scheduled to be off from Tuesday, Nov. 24, though Monday, Nov. 30.

Nix on Thursday also shared information concerning the Department of Health’s recent travel order, which requires all people who travel out of the state or the country to have a negative covid-19 test within 72 hours before entering Pennsylvania or to quarantine for two weeks upon entering the commonwealth.

Nix said anyone who will be traveling out of state must notify their building principal before a student returns to school and provide the date the student returned to Pennsylvania. The student must test negative for covid-19 within 72 hours of the return date in order to return to in-person instruction.

If a family is unable to provide that information, the student must quarantine for two weeks or provide the results of a negative covid-19 test before returning to in-person instruction.