Warren Township Schools To Continue Full Days, In-Person Amid COVID 'Tsunami'

WARREN, NJ — Warren Township Schools is continuing to keep students in school in-person for full days as many other New Jersey districts pivot to virtual or half days due to rising COVID-19 cases.

"The significant increase in cases calls for enhanced vigilance but not panic. We know that our school facilities are among the safest places in our community even in the midst of an exceptional surge in cases right now. We will continue to prioritize our full-day school schedule so long as public health officials agree we can do so safely and we are able to fully staff the district," said Superintendent Dr. Matthew Mingle in a letter to the community on Sunday.

His letter follows record breaking reports of positive COVID-19 cases throughout the state.

On Friday, while touring a newly-launched federal COVID-19 testing facility in East Orange, Governor Phil Murphy declared that an "omicron tsunami" is making its way through the state.

The state also reported 29,740 new cases on Jan. 1, the highest since the pandemic began. It's currently unclear how much of New Jersey's recent case rise is due to omicron. But according to Murphy, the speed at which COVID-19 is spreading in the state is "staggering."

The governor said the latest totals are most likely an undercount, because they don't include the results of home tests.

Despite the high numbers, Murphy said Monday he has no plans to shut down schools the way it did in March 2020. Read More: Close NJ Schools? Murphy Says No Amid COVID 'Tsunami'

In order for Warren's plan to succeed, Mingle asked parents for their help:

1. Parents - please please please fill out the daily screener on time each morning with 100 percent complete honesty. Do not send a child to school exhibiting illness symptoms. Follow the screener guidelines carefully. Your adherence to this protocol is the single most important thing you can do to help keep close contacts to a minimum and schools open. Given the number of cases in our community, never assume that symptoms are "just allergies" or a cold. In addition to COVID, there are currently very high levels of flu in our area. If there’s any question at all, please keep your child home.
2. If your child tested positive over winter break, please email as many details as possible to the school nurse as soon as possible. We are currently around 50 cases over winter break with more email review to come. It will take staff all day Monday to process these emails. The more details you include, the more efficient our staff can be in responding to the health and safety of your child and the continuation of your child’s educational program. A full summary of winter break cases will be sent out via district email in the late afternoon on Monday.
3. Please ensure that your child has a well-fitted, high-quality mask that must be worn at all times in school facilities and on school buses except when actively eating or drinking. If you have not upgraded your masks recently, the CDC has guidance on its website about the best types of masks to protect your child and others.

As of Dec. 23, Warren Schools reported 5 new COVID cases and a total of 91 since the beginning of the school year.

As of Dec. 30, Warren Township reported 51 new cases for that day and a total of 297 since Dec. 24, according to Somerset County.

Mingle sent out the reminder to the community on Sunday as families returned from winter break.

With regards to quarantining, while the Center for Disease Control and Prevention recently revised isolation and quarantine timeframes for the general population it did not include K-12 schools. As a result, the school district must continue to follow the New Jersey Department of Health's guidelines.

Positive cases must isolate for a minimum of 10 full days including at least 24 hours symptom-free without the use of medication. Close contacts must isolate for 7 days with a negative test on days 5-7 or 10 days without a test.

Mingle also asked the community for help in finding people to serve as a substitute teacher, paraprofessional, custodian, or bus driver to keep schools open. Visit warrentboe.org for more information about how to get started.

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