M.P.S. updates testing protocols amid Omicron variant surge, continues to urge masks
MIDLAND, Mich. — Midland Public Schools Superintendent Michael Sharrow announced on Monday that COVID-19 isolation protocols at the district would change in accordance with new guidance from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDDHS).
At the Jan. 10 Board of Education meeting, Mr. Sharrow said that the district received the guidance earlier that afternoon. Close contacts who are not fully vaccinated can choose one of the following options:
- isolate at home for five days, get tested on day 5, and wear a mask in public for the next five days.
- wear a mask for 10 days, getting tested on days 1, 3 and 5.
- isolate at home for 10 days if unable or unwilling to wear a mask or get tested.
Individuals who test positive must isolate at home for five days. After this, should symptoms improve with no fever in 24 hours, they may return if masked through day 10.
The new guidance comes in light of the C.D.C.’s isolation guidelines which were updated late December, in light of recent findings about the Omicron variant, which suggest that it has a shorter incubation period than other COVID-19 variants.
“We did meet with the Health Department this morning about those and what to expect, and they released it this afternoon,” Mr. Sharrow said at the meeting. “They’re about what we expect, so they did follow CDC reduction of five days, and the testing protocols are going to change.”
As of Jan. 10, there were 218 positive cases among students and staff in the district, along with 865 close contacts. Mr. Sharrow said the high number of close contacts will change when the protocols are put into place, when approximately half of those individuals are expected to undergo testing.
M.P.S. continues to strongly recommend that all students and staff wear face masks, and that all eligible individuals receive a COVID-19 vaccine, about one month after allowing a partial mask order to expire.
Parents in favor of a universal mask mandate came to the Jan. 10 meeting to address the board, frustrated that administrators are not actively enforcing the Midland County health department’s recommendation of wearing masks in a public setting in light of a recent surge in COVID-19 cases.
Among the speakers was a Midland High junior who expressed desire for safety over normalcy in school, based on recent experiences with COVID-19 in her school community and family.
Jennifer Ringgold came on behalf of 24 concerned individuals who, she said, would have attended the meeting if there was a virtual option for addressing the board.
She expressed concerns over staffing issues in M.P.S. facilities amid health concerns, as well as the district’s lack of action regarding implementing a universal mask mandate.
In a communique issued earlier Jan. 10, M.P.S. strongly urged families to follow the Midland County Health Department’s mask recommendations amid the rise of the Omicron variant.
“As we have all been hearing in the media, high numbers of COVID are now causing staffing and sub issues for schools across the country. Unfortunately, higher COVID numbers could lead to similar staffing & sub issues for Midland Public Schools for the next several weeks,” the communique stated.
“Why should students and families follow recommendations when school leaders are not modeling wearing masks themselves? What do you say to a child who thinks their principal doesn’t care about them because the principal never wears a mask?” Ms. Ringgold asked.
Furthermore, Ms. Ringgold shared a comment from a nurse who is in contact with the Midland County health department regarding MPS’s case count.
“They say, ‘It isn’t safe to continue as we are. Not for the kids, and not for the community. You are going to overtax the local hospitals more so than they already are. Hospital staff are burned out, and patients aren’t able to get the non-COVID healthcare they need because facilities are swamped. The schools should go virtual across the board for a week or two to get ahead of this, and institute a mask mandate. It is really the only ethical course of action,'” Ms. Ringgold said.
She recommended checking the latest case data on the Mask Up MPS Facebook page. Recent data indicates a surge in close contacts and cases among students and staff from November through January.
Michael Piwowarski covers education, including higher ed and Midland Public Schools, for the City Paper.