COVID numbers rise slightly following winter break

     After returning to school following the holiday break, students and staff within the Monticello Community School District (MCSD) are still isolating and quarantining from COVID-19.

     Superintendent Brian Jaeger released a district update on Jan. 8 as the first week back to school came to an end.

     There are currently seven students and two staff members in isolation, and 10 students and two staff under quarantine. Those numbers amount to 2 percent of the student population and 1 percent of the staff out for COVID-related reasons.

     “These are really good numbers,” commented Jaeger.

     Before MCSD went on break, on Dec. 18, the positivity rate in Monticello was 12.8 percent. Since then, the rate has increased to 19.4 percent. (The Jones County positivity rate sits at 14.9 percent.)

     “Over the last seven days,” prefaced Jaeger, “there have been 20 cases of COVID-19 in Monticello.

     “The good news is that the numbers we are seeing in the schools right now are pretty good,” continued Jaeger. “We are going to just keep moving forward and keep our fingers crossed that the numbers stay manageable for us.”

     Jaeger also shared that the most recent update regarding getting staff vaccinated points to late January or early February.

     “(I) just hope that everything stays on schedule,” he said.

     Finally, the numbers of students, PreK-12 who are taking part in hybrid or full-online learning continues to decrease, at 187. This encompasses roughly 19 percent of the student body.

     “I expect that number to drop even more next week as we begin the second semester,” Jaeger said.