September 10th, 2021 by WCBC Radio
For the week of September 3-9, 2021, South Penn Elementary School met the Maryland Department of Health definition of a school wide outbreak of COVID-19. There were four classrooms in the building that had at least two individuals who tested positive for COVID-19. This outbreak resulted in the closure of one kindergarten classroom.
ACPS had three schools with classrooms/cohorts that met the definition of a classroom/cohort outbreak due to two or more individuals in the classroom/cohort testing positive for COVID-19. Fort Hill High School had two classrooms that met the definition; Allegany High School had one classroom that met the definition; and Washington Middle School had a cohort outbreak in their 6th grade class.
There were also two buses that met the definition of a cohort outbreak by having two or more individuals on the bus test positive for COVID-19. These included a bus from Mountain Ridge High School and a bus from Mt. Savage School. In all cases, parents were notified of the outbreak status.
ACPS had nine staff members and 41 students reported as positive for COVID-19 during this time. Six staff members and 182 students were identified as a close contact to a positive person, and eight staff members and 150 students were identified as having COVID-19 symptoms.