Schools adjust to new cases
Shenendehowa details virus tracking process, Hoosick Falls to close Tuesday for cleaning
School districts and county health departments were busy Monday alerting the public to a number of possible exposures to COVID -19 in the Capital Region, including a Siena College COVID online dashboard that showed the virus has been detected in wastewater at a dorm, and the Hoosick Falls school district closing for a day to clean buildings after its first positive case was found.
Shenendehowa cases continue to increase
Three more people from the Shenendehowa Central School District have tested positive for COVID -19.
The district announced on Sunday that two people from Chango Elementary and one person from Karigon Elementary have tested positive, bringing the district’s total case count since the start of school to 13. All cases have been identified within the past eight days.
The district was notified of the new cases Saturday by the Saratoga County Public Health Department. Anyone who had prolonged, direct contact with the individual was expected to be contacted Sunday.
The district also revealed a bit more about the way it handles COVID -positive cases.
When the department notifies the district of a positive case, the district’s COVID Response Team meets to begin gathering information for contact tracing purposes. This includes information such as class lists, last date in school, seating charts, lunch and recess details, wearing of masks, social distancing, amount of time spent with individuals, transportation to and
from school, and anything else that helps with “the most complete assessment” of the situation, the district said.
The district is again reminding the community that parents, students and staff members need to be “just as vigilant” outside of school when it comes to COVID -19 safety protocols as in school.
Queensbury Head Start program going virtual
Head Start is transitioning two of its Queensbury classes to remote learning after an individual from the program tested positive for COVID -19.
The Queensbury Union Free School District, which hosts the preschool-age program at its elementary school, announced the case Sunday — the same day it was notified, according to a notice on the district website.
The person followed safety protocols at all times, the district said. Nevertheless, Head Start has decided to switch to remote learning for 14 days and is working with Warren County Public Health to determine the person’s contacts and advise on the need to quarantine, it said.
County health officials determined the elementary school could safely remain open for instruction, the district said.
Prior to this case, Queensbury Elementary had two known coronavirus cases from members of the same household, the district announced Sept. 10. On Sept. 23, a case was detected at the district's high school.
The Hoosick Falls Central School District will close for cleaning Tuesday after learning that a student at the high school tested positive for COVID -19.
The district said it was informed of the case Monday by the Rensselaer County Health Department, which has advised any siblings or contacts of the student to quarantine through Oct. 9 as a precaution.
The health department will contact all students who had contact with the person, the district said.
As a precautionary measure, the district will close Tuesday for deep cleaning. More information will be sent home, the district said in a notice on its website.
Guilderland High sees positive case
A member of the Guilderland High School community has tested positive for COVID -19, the district announced Monday.
The district did not specify whether the case was a student or someone who works in the building.
The district worked with the Albany County Department of Health and determined that any risk of transmission to others would have been minimal, she said. Everyone who was exposed to the person has been contacted, she said.
Classes will resume as planned Tuesday, she said.
This is the third known case within the district since school reopened this fall.
Virus found in wastewater at Siena
Siena College researchers have found "quantifiable levels" of coronavirus in wastewater at the dormitory on the north side of campus.
At least 18 students have tested positive for the virus since mid-august, according to Siena's online COVID -19 tracker, which is updated daily. Two weeks ago, on Sept. 16, the college had reported three cases.
Siena's wastewater testing program, headed up by Kate Meierdiercks, an associate professor and chair of Siena’s department of environmental studies and sciences, uses cutting-edge technology to find asymptomatic cases before they present on an individual test.
“The really useful part is wastewater surveillance data could be used as an early-warning system for colleges that have large populations to monitor,” she said.
The virus was also detected on the south side of campus, which sometimes has outside visitors, and the dorm Hines Hall, though Hines did not have quantifiable levels, according to the dashboard.
The college has also partnered with an outside lab to conduct random nasal swab tests on 2 percent of the campus population each week.
A spokeswoman for the college did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the numbers on the dashboard.
Siena students make their way through campus.