COVID cases spike throughout MCSD

     It was another week of rising COVID cases throughout the Monticello School District.

     Superintendent Brian Jaeger provided his weekly update on Friday, Jan. 21. There are currently 31 positive COVID cases for K-12, which includes staff and students. This is an increase of 16 cases from last week. There are also 41 cases being monitored, which is an increase of 19 cases from the previous week.

     According to the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH), Jones County’s seven-day positivity rate sits at 32 percent. This is up by 8 percent from last week. There have been 268 positive COVID cases reported in the last week, an increase of 99 cases from the week prior.

     “By the numbers, one of every three people being tested are COVID positive,” offered Jaeger. “With the new variant, many are asymptomatic so there may be more out there than the statistics show.

     “As I shared last week,” continued Jaeger, “the good news is that this variant should move on through in a few weeks. Then, theoretically, we should have a reprieve because so many people are vaccinated and many more will have antibodies.”

     Using an analogy, Jaeger said if you picture yourself driving through a bad thunderstorm, “right now we are driving really slow with the flashers on. We are not ready to pull over under an overpass yet, but slow and steady for now.”

     He reminded parents/guardians to watch if their kids are exhibiting COVID symptoms.

     “Keep them home,” warned Jaeger. “Even if they don’t have COVID, we don’t want to spread other illnesses either.”