OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – Osceola County Superintendent Dr. Debra Pace said it’s been a challenging start to the semester but is optimistic now that more students are returning to class.
“I’m excited to see that we’ve continued to see attendance improve throughout the week; that first day back, we had about 23% of our kiddos not here,” Pace said.
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She said as of their latest report, 5 percent of students were absent.
The news isn’t as good when it comes to staff. As of Friday, Pace says 383 teachers are out sick, and 16 bus drivers are out after testing positive for COVID.
With the new quarantine guidance from the CDC, Pace hopes that means a quicker return to campus.
For now, though, they’ve had to make some adjustments. Pace said this week some of their middle and high schools had to have classes in the cafeteria or auditorium, due to teachers being out sick.
Pace said her gratitude for everyone working to make in-person learning as smooth as possible.
“It’s been challenging, it’s been difficult, but our folks just keep rising to the occasion and I couldn’t be more proud of what we’re doing to continue to serve our kids and our community,” said Dr. Pace.