Fairfield Ludlowe Closing For 2 Days After More Coronavirus Cases

FAIRFIELD, CT — Fairfield Ludlowe High School will be closed Thursday and Friday after several students tested positive for the coronavirus.

The building closure will allow for cleaning and contact tracing in the wake of the new cases, according to an email to parents and staff from the school district. Students will participate in remote learning while the school is closed, instead of the usual hybrid schedule. As of Wednesday, a total of five students were confirmed to have contracted the virus, some of whom had been in close contact with members of the school community and general public.

“We need to keep in mind that we are educating our students in the midst of a global pandemic,” said the email from superintendent Mike Cummings, and COVID-19 health and safety compliance liaison Angelus Papageorge. “We will continue to confront new cases and new situations. We will learn lessons from each event and improve over time. We will continue to educate and protect our children to the very best of our ability.”

Wednesday’s email followed a message Tuesday to parents and staff about the district’s first positive coronavirus test. That case also involved a Fairfield Ludlowe student, but the student had not been in close contact with any fellow students or school staff in the two days before they were tested.

In addition to the coronavirus cases at Fairfield Ludlowe, two district students and two staff members were in quarantine as of Wednesday. Those students and staff were affiliated with Riverfield Elementary School and the district’s central office.

In Wednesday’s email, school officials said the district’s safety protocols are working, and that anyone who has been in close contact with a student who tested positive for the virus will be notified by a representative of the Fairfield Health Department and required to quarantine for 14 days.