Jackson County's elementary school students are getting an extra day of holiday time because of widespread flu among both the students and teachers.
School system superintendent Dr. April Howard announced the decision to close elementary schools on Thursday because 14% of students and a similar number of teachers and staff were absent as the result of widespread flu cases.
Howard said the outbreak was not as serious for middle and high school students, so those schools would be in session Thursday and close early as had already been planned.
Read the full content of Howard's message here:
“Unfortunately, Jackson County Elementary Schools have been significantly impacted by an outbreak of the flu and strep throat. Georgia Department of Community Health recommends an epidemic consideration when more than 10 percent of the students are affected. As of today, we have over 14% of our students absent and a similar number of teachers and staff. In an effort to prevent a widespread outbreak in families over the holiday, we will not have school for elementary students on Thursday, December 19th. While we regret that children will miss the last day before the winter holiday, we feel this is the best decision for the well-being of our children, staff, and their families. Our middle and high school students who have not been as impacted will attend for the early release day as planned, so they can complete mid-term exams and finish the first semester strong. Our facilities team will be working diligently to clean and disinfect our schools so we have a healthy and productive start in January. Thank you for your understanding and we wish you a very happy holiday!”
