COVID-19 Case Reported At 3rd New Rochelle School

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Parents were informed on Monday that someone at a third New Rochelle school has tested positive for COVID-19.

The announcement comes just days after a coronavirus case was reported at Isaac E. Young on just the second day of classes on Sept. 14. Just a few days later, on Sept. 17, families of students at Albert Leonard Middle School were told there was a COVID-19 case discovered at the school.

In a letter to families dated Sept. 20, Superintendent Jonathan Raymond confirmed that a staff member or student at William B. Ward Elementary School has tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.

All of the schools have remained open, according to Raymond, for teaching and learning as school officials implement protocols put in place prior to the start of the school year for dealing with potential coronavirus cases among students or staff.

As in the previous two cases, school officials would not say if the infected person was a student or member of staff. They confirmed that the "individual was at the school while possibly infectious," but cited confidentiality laws in refusing to further identify the infected person.
If either a student or school district employee is identified as a close contact of the person who tested positive, they will receive a call from a Westchester County Department of Health contact tracer, school officials said.

"Persons who will be contacted will see 'NYS Contact Tracing' or a '518' area code appear on the caller ID of their phone," Raymond wrote. "If you should see one of these identifiers, you are strongly urged to answer the call immediately and cooperate with the contact tracer. Your cooperation and prompt response will help protect us all."

Raymond added if families do not receive notification within the next 36 hours, "your child may not be at risk of COVID-19 exposure while at William B. Ward Elementary School."

Besides following all Westchester County Department of Health protocols for contact tracing and self-quarantine, Raymond wrote that the school will be disinfected and sanitized following New York State Department of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.