Fifth graders at Pioneer Elementary School in Pierz will be distance learning for the next week due a COVID-19 case in the school.

Pierz School District announced the news on its Facebook page Sunday, Sept. 20, and attached a news release stating the person who tested positive was last in attendance Tuesday, Sept. 15.

The district worked with the Minnesota Department of Health, the news release stated, to identify and notify those in close contact with the infected person. The risk of exposure for other individuals present in the building on that date is no greater than the risk of contracting the virus in the general community, according to the news release. Neither Pierz Superintendent George Weber nor Pioneer Elementary School Principal Tom Otte could be reached for comment Monday, Sept. 21, but Brainerd school officials reported receiving the same guidance from MDH when they reported their first case in the district the week before.

There was no school for fifth grade students Monday, with distance learning planned to start Tuesday, Sept. 22. Materials were available for parent pickup Monday, and teachers planned to contact families directly Monday and Tuesday to ensure each student is ready for distance learning.

Based on current information, fifth graders are expected to return to in-person classes Sept. 29, according to the news release.

“For privacy reasons, we can’t share many details about the status of the person,” the news release stated. “At this time they are either staying home and/or working at home for at least 10 days, and any staff or students who have been in close contact with them have been notified that they must also stay home and/or work from home for 14 days. If you have not been contacted, you are not considered to be at higher risk, and there is nothing additional you need to do.”

The district has taken action to clean and sanitize facilities and are working closely with MDH to monitor the situation.

Pierz schools opened Sept. 8 with in-person classes for all students, though roughly 85-90 chose distance learning.

Morrison County numbers

As of Sept. 21, MDH reported 208 COVID-19 cases in Morrison County. That number reflects an increase of 59 new cases over the past 14 days, putting the county’s 14-day case rate per 10,000 people at 17.6

Gov. Tim Walz’s Safe Learning Plan announced in late July encouraged school districts to take into account their county’s 14-day case rate per 10,000 people. The formula for this rate divides the total number of cases over the last 14 days by the county’s population per 10,000. The Safe Learning Plans provides the following recommendations based on a county’s rate:

• 0-9 cases per 10,000 over 14 days: In-person learning for all students.

• 10-19: In-person learning for elementary students and hybrid learning for secondary students.

• 20-29: Hybrid learning for all students.

• 30-49: Hybrid learning for elementary students and distance learning for secondary students.

• 50-plus: Distance learning for all students.

According to an update from Morrison County Public Health, the county first exceeded 10 for the 14-day case rate Sept. 8, pushing school districts into the recommended model of in-person learning for elementary students and hybrid learning for secondary students.
A statement posted on the school district’s website Sept. 10 said the higher numbers did not mean the district would change it’s in-person learning model. Public health officials, the statement said, did not recommend any immediate changes at the time.

“You can be assured that we will not make any change from one Learning Model to the next without providing you adequate notice,” the statement said. “For example, if a rapid increase in case numbers involves many students, we would likely make decisions as quickly as possible to protect your children and household. On the other hand, if there are increases in Covid case counts that might not impact significant numbers of students and families (like long term care facilities, or some other specific industry), we could take more time to evaluate the trend over time and continue our most effective educational models as long as we can.”

THERESA BOURKE may be reached at theresa.bourke@brainerddispatch.com or 218-855-5860. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DispatchTheresa .