MIAMI – An increase in cases of COVID-19 has been confirmed in several South Florida schools.
Students at Coral Park Elementary in Southwest Miami-Dade were told they must return to online learning online as of Wednesday. A spokesperson for the school district telling Local 10 News:
“After consultation with the Florida Department of Health in Miami-Dade, Coral Park Elementary School will pivot to online instruction today after an employee and a student reportedly tested positive for COVID-19.”
A source within the district told Local 10 the employee is a roving teacher who moves between several classrooms. According to the district, anyone who had contact with the affected people were notified and all buildings have been sanitized.
The teachers' union expressed concerns on Wednesday about the process for communicating positive cases, pointing out the district dashboard does not match the Department of Health list of schools with COVID-19.
“There are grave concerns,” said United Teachers of Dade President karla Hernanez-Mats. “We’re seeing a delay a lack of coordination between the district and Department of Health.”
According to the district, cases involving teachers and staff immediately get updated on the dashboard, but those involving students must first be confirmed by the Department of Health, causing delays before those cases are reflected on the district’s website.
“We believe that anybody, whether it’s a teacher or a parent self-reporting, saying their child is COVID-19 positive, every single situation needs to be taken at face value,” said Hernandez-Mats.
Local 10 learned late Tuesday that Coral Park Elementary will reopen for in-person learning on Wednesday.