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Branford High School Reports First COVID-19 Positive Individual

On the morning of Sept. 24, Branford High School was notified that a member of the school community had tested positive for COVID-19. Parents and community members were notified in a letter issued from Superintendent of Schools Hamlet Hernandez in the afternoon on Thursday, Sept. 24. The person who tested positive was last in the school building on Tuesday, Sept. 22, and is quarantining for 10 days at home, according to the message.

In sharing the news, Hernandez also stated in the letter, "Anyone who is considered a 'close contact' with this person will or may already have been contacted by school officials and/or public health officials and provided with instructions on the appropriate steps to take."

Hernandez also noted that the school building will not need to close due to the case, noting "..in collaboration with the East Shore Health Department, the District has determined that there is no reason to close school or cancel in-person classes due to the sufficiency of the District's current cleaning protocols and mitigation measures." 

Hernandez closed the brief message with the statement that, "...the District is closely monitoring this situation and will provide additional information should it be required."

The letter also asked parents/guardians, students, and staff to continue to conduct daily health monitoring and to stay home and contact their medical provider if they experience symptoms including fever, chills or shaking chills, uncontrolled new cough, difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, new loss of taste or smell.  

The letter also provided the CDC website address for additional information on COVID-19 symptoms.

BHS students had been learning online during the first seven days of school (Sept. 10 - Sept. 18) with the first cohort group of grade 9-12 students returning to learn inside the high school building this week, starting Monday, Sept. 21; as phase three of the district's return to in-person learning hybrid plan. The district's hybrid plan has students in grades 1 - 12 attending in-person classes in their school building twice weekly by cohort and twice weekly online, with asynchronous online education on Wednesdays. Kindergarten students are in their buildings four days per week and online Wednesdays.