A second grader in Georgia tested positive for COVID-19 after attending the first day of school in person.
The student goes to Sixes Elementary in the state’s Cherokee County School district, which began in-person classes on Monday. In its reopening plans, the county recommended but did not require students to wear masks when social distancing was not possible.
After it became known that the student contracted the virus, one classroom was temporarily closed on Tuesday for deep cleaning, and a teacher and 20 other students were asked to quarantine for two weeks.
New cases of the coronavirus have been linked to schools as Gov. Brian Kemp as pushed for the full reopening of in-person learning despite upticks in COVID-19 infections across the state.
About 260 employees have been reported to have tested positive or been exposed to the virus in the state’s largest school district, Gwinnett County Public Schools, which is set to reopen for online learning on Aug. 12.
“As of last Thursday, we had approximately 260 employees who had been excluded from work due to a positive case or contact with a case,” GCPS spokeswoman Sloan Roach told CNN. “This number is fluid as we continue to have new reports and others who are returning to work.”
Another district, Marietta City Schools, had five employees test positive with another presumed positive. The district began its classes virtually on Tuesday.
Georgia surpassed 180,000 cases of the coronavirus and has had nearly 4,000 deaths. It was one of the first states to reopen its economy earlier this year amid lockdowns around the country.
