Twelve public school students in St. Johns County have tested positive for COVID-19 since classes began Aug. 31, according to data from the school district’s newly unveiled dashboard.
Another 156 students are quarantined at home for 14 days due to close contact with a person testing positive.
The dashboard provides a weekly update on the number of students and employees who have tested positive for the coronavirus, as well as the number of students and employees quarantined at home due to close contact with a case. The latest figures are from Friday, Sept. 4.
Though the dashboard doesn’t identify which schools the affected students attend, a spokeswoman for the district confirmed that one Ponte Vedra High School student was among those testing positive. That case resulted in 31 others who were asked to self-quarantine.
The district has a total 44,175 students and 5,298 employees.
As of Sept. 4, four staff members have tested positive and 16 are being quarantined.
When a positive case is discovered, the district identifies close school contacts and reports to the St. Johns County Health Department. The Health Department then sends out letters to the families of the students and follows up to discuss the situation further.
For the new school year, the district has implemented strategies to help limit exposure. Students are required to wear masks, and classrooms have been configured to maintain social distancing. In addition, desk shields have been installed.
