Woodbridge Schools Remain In Person Next Week, Despite Case Surge

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — Although Woodridge Township continues to log its highest coronavirus case numbers in nearly two years of the pandemic, Woodbridge schools will remain in person when classes resume Jan. 3 after winter break, said superintendent Joe Massimino in this New Year's Eve letter home to parents.

"Our district will continue to operate on our regular full day schedule when we return on January 3, 2022. We believe it is vital to continue meeting students’ needs and providing appropriate resources during this challenging juncture," the superintendent wrote.

So far in New Jersey, New Brunswick, South Brunswick, Newark, South Orange-Maplewood and the Paterson school districts, among others, have all decided to go virtual for the first week, or two weeks in some cases, back from winter break.

On Thursday, Dec. 30 Woodbridge ended its highest case count week ever, with 1,350 new cases of coronavirus in the last seven days. For comparison, Woodbridge had 1,004 cases the entire summer of 2021.

However, there were no new deaths to report. Also, children are not very likely to contract serious coronavirus cases, according to the CDC, even if they are not vaccinated. Both CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky and Dr. Anthony Fauci said on New Year's Eve that children are not being hospitalized because of coronavirus. They are being taken to the hospital for many other various reasons, and then testing positive as part of mandatory testing requirements.

Superintendent Massimino acknowledged the reality of surging case numbers:

"While the break gave students and staff some time away from school, it unfortunately did not give our community a break from COVID-19. Despite being out of school for over a week, the number of overall positive cases saw a dramatic increase," he wrote.

Massimino did ask that parents "use their judgement regarding any close contact scenarios that may have occurred during winter break. If parents, out of an abundance of caution, decide there is a need for their child to quarantine upon our return to school, please make your child’s school aware and email their teachers. As always, if your child is not feeling well or has symptoms of being sick, please keep them home."

He also said the district is awaiting guidance from the New Jersey Department of Health regarding the latest CDC guidelines.