NOLA-PS Weekly COVID-19 Related Updates

With most of our schools reopened following Hurricane Ida, NOLA Public Schools (NOLA-PS) continues to be committed to the health and safety of our school community.

This week’s COVID Tracker numbers reflect the first full week with many of our schools back in the classroom.

“I am grateful and inspired by the dedication of our schools to keep their teachers, staff, students and their families safe from COVID-19 as we continue to reopen after Hurricane Ida,” said NOLA-PS Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. “Students and staff have participated in testing in record numbers, and I encourage everyone to keep up the good work. Regular testing is a tremendously important tool to safeguard our school community and keep our schools among the safest places for students to be.”

More than 13,500 students and staff were tested Monday through Friday last week through NOLA-PS’ own testing program and its partnership with the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH). The positivity test rate among those tested is approximately 1 percent.

“I’d like to stress the importance of not letting up and having your children tested on a weekly basis. This is the best way to help ensure we keep the coronavirus out of our school community. We are doing well, but we need to continue to battle this pandemic with all the resources we have,” Dr. Lewis said.

NOLA-PS urges families to continue checking with their schools for the latest testing opportunities available on their campuses.

As we’ve been doing since the start of the pandemic, NOLA-PS will continue to monitor the data that measures the impact of COVID-19. Our goal is to continue to preserve in-person learning.

The American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, the LDH, and the New Orleans Health Department have analyzed the data and all agree the best place for children to be is in the classroom. The benefits include developing social and emotional skills, access to healthy meals and activities, and access to mental health support that cannot be offered through virtual learning.

With that in mind, NOLA-PS will continue to publicly share each week the number of confirmed cases and precautionary quarantines that our schools self-report. We will also continue to remain in close contact with the LDH and our health advisers as we navigate the 2021-2022 school year.

NOLA-PS’ COVID-19 Case Tracker provides cumulative data of self-reported cases in our public schools since this reporting began on Sept. 21, 2020. Last school year's data is archived and available for viewing on our website.

The NOLA-PS COVID-19 Case Tracker reports the number of active and cumulative positive cases of COVID-19 by school site, the number of quarantined individuals and the number of positive cases of COVID-19 reported over time for the district and by school site.

When:
Mondays @ 4PM

Where:
Visit our COVID Case Tracker dashboard to see the latest data that shows the impact of COVID-19 in our school community.

Update:
As of Friday, August 17, the District is tracking a total of 34 active cases of COVID-19 (7 staff; 27 students) among 19 schools in our school community, resulting in 33 individuals in quarantine.

Since our last COVID Tracker update on August 23, 2021, 333 cumulative cases have been reported.

The case numbers above reflect data the District has received from schools. In some cases, there may be a lag time in reporting due to the timeframe in which families notify their schools regarding test results among students.

The District’s COVID Case Tracker reports active cases over an approximately two-week period. For the purposes of our dashboard, an active case is defined as a COVID-19 case that is confirmed and within its isolation period.

All schools are required to report positive cases to the LDH and the District. The District is continuing to stay on top of updates, collaborate with state and local agencies, and work closely with our school leaders, task force, and community stakeholders to ensure a safe 2021-2022 school year.

The data included in our COVID-19 Tracker reflects self-reported cases from our schools and provides the real-time impact of the pandemic in our school community.

Since individuals 12 and older are eligible for the vaccine, our rules for quarantine and isolation have changed for the 2021-2022 school year. To learn more about the process, please refer to NOLA-PS’ COVID Guidance for the details.

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