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Students continue virtual learning during Premont ISD COVID-19 outbreak

The entire school district complex is being sprayed down after a number of students showed up to school with COVID-19, along with one teacher.

PREMONT, Texas — A COVID-19 outbreak in Premont still has the school district there holding class virtually instead of in person. 

We found a Premont ISD custodian going classroom to classroom using the
Clorox Total 360 System. The entire school district complex is being sprayed down after a number of students showed up to school with COVID-19, along with one teacher.

"I am not going to open our schools unless I think they are really safe," Superintendent Steve VanMatre, Premont ISD said.  "And when I had 11, 12 positives in the matter of a morning, I didn’t think they were safe.” 

All teachers and students at Premont ISD schools are back to virtual only learning. VanMatre tells 3News that the district went back to virtual only learning back on Monday, May 10th.

"I thought we had to take a step back and do some cleaning and do some quarantining and do some testing,” VanMatre said. 

Unfortunately, it was discovered that even more students continued to test positive after that initial outbreak.

"We’ve had families come in all week for COVID testing, we’ve had a few more positives but we’re gonna come back on Tuesday and hopefully finish the year without another incident,” VanMatre said. 

The district is going to hold a vaccination clinic at the high school on May 22nd for Students 12 years and older. 150 doses of the Pfizer vaccine will be available.

Credit: Premont ISD

"When you’re gaining momentum for state assessments and even though there’s no accountability this year, Michael, there’s graduation requirements that these high school kids have to pass and then they’re ready to take the test and you have to pull back it’s very disconcerting,” VanMatre said. 

In person classes are supposed to begin again on Tuesday, May 18. If those students who tested positive in the initial outbreak test negative next Monday or Tuesday they’ll be allowed back into school. If not they’ll have to wait 14 days to come back to school.

For the latest updates on coronavirus in the Coastal Bend, click here.

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