BOISE, Idaho — Students and staff at the Caldwell School District got an early start to an already long weekend.
More than 20 percent of students and staff missed class earlier this week, according to Caldwell School District spokesperson Jessica Watts. The district reported their COVID testing positivity rate is up to 33%.
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare says 5% is the goal.
"We've been keeping, ya know, an eye on things," Watts said. "There's been an increase in COVID-19 positive cases within our schools, staffing shortages and student absenteeism. We felt that this would allow both students and staff to get healthy and finish their quarantines."
The district cancelled class Thursday and Friday making for a 5-day weekend.
The district is following snow day procedures; therefore, meals will not be provided to students during the days off, Watts said. The district is directing families in need of daycare to the Boys and Girls Club for students between kindergarten and 5th grade. A membership costs 25 dollars a year.
"School is a vital part of students and teacher lives, so all of that kind of went into consideration," Watts said.
Other school districts across the Treasure Valley are monitoring their absentee rates too. The Nampa School District considers closing an elementary school if the absentee rates hits 20%, according to Nampa School District spokesperson Kathleen Tuck. Middle school and high school closures are considered at 15%.
However, some districts are taking a different approach that isn't benchmarked with predetermined numbers. The West Ada School District - the largest school district in the state - is making its decisions on whether schools can operate with the available resources.
"To determine this, it comes down to filled versus unfilled positions, and specifically when schools start to lose those staff that make it impossible to operationally keep the school running," WASD spokesperson Char Jackson said in an email.
The Boise School District doesn’t have a raw number threshold either. BSD is the only Treasure Valley school district currently requiring masks and reported a 7% absentee rate Thursday; BSD's absentee rate is roughly 1/3 Caldwell’s absentee rate.
"Health and safety is our metric. If we can operate safely, we will remain open," BSD spokesperson Dan Hollar said.
BSD is not considering any closures or move away from in-person learning at this time, Hollar said.
The Caldwell School District returns to class Tuesday, Jan. 18th. The district is requiring masks the first week back.
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