WEST NEWBURY, MASS. (WHDH) - Pentucket Regional School District Superintendent Justin Bartholomew is urging caution amid an increase in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks.
Fourteen positive COVID-19 cases have been reported at Bagnall Elementary School, including 12 among students, Bartholomew announced.
The state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education mandated that two sixth-grade classes be fully tested because of the increased number of positive cases.
Four COVID-19 cases have been reported at Page Elementary School, Bartholomew said.
Through contact tracing, most of the 18 cases were determined to be connected to social gatherings outside of school involving multiple Pentucket district students, Bartholomew added.
Bartholomew is recommending that parents have their child tested if there is close contact with someone who has COVID-19, and to keep their child home until they receive a negative test result.
Parents of students 12 years and older who have not yet vaccinated their children are urged by Bartholomew to do so to help protect them from the virus and curtail its spread.
“The health and well-being of our students and staff is a paramount concern at all times,” Bartholomew said. “I ask that parents and guardians use this new data to inform their decisions about their children’s activities outside of school.”
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