AUSTIN, Texas — Austin-Travis County's dashboard shows that more than 4,300 kids from ages 1 to 19 have had the coronavirus. The good news is there haven't been any deaths in that age range in the Austin area.
Most of the kids in that age group are in school, and Austin Public Health said it's still safe for them to learn in person.
"The vast majority of exposures we have seen in the school setting have been focused largely on extracurricular activities, athletics and dance teams, and social gatherings," APH Chief Epidemiologist Janet Pichette said.
However, some schools are shutting down because of an increase in COVID-19 cases.
KVUE is keeping track of Central Texas schools temporarily closing due to the pandemic. Here's a list:
On Nov. 16, the high school closed to in-person learning until at least Nov. 18 due to a "gradual but steady" rise in COVID-19 cases at the campus. On Nov. 16, the school held a drive-thru for rapid COVID-19 testing, testing more than 250 people that day, with at least four people testing positive. Testing was set to continue through Nov. 18.
On Nov. 18, Austin ISD said in the three days the campus was closed, almost 300 students were proactively tested. As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, four tests came back positive and those individuals have been notified. The district said there is no evidence of transmission from on-campus activities, so on-campus learning resumed on Thursday, Nov. 19.
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Students went back to class and then Thanksgiving break, and the district said students will continue with remote learning after the break so the virus doesn't spread. The district recommends students and staff members get tested if they have COVID-19 symptoms, have had close contact with someone who has it or has recently traveled.
The district superintendent doesn't believe they will need to repeat this process after winter break since that lasts 14 days where Thanksgiving only lasted a week.
"In the best interest of our staff and students," all campuses within this district switched to remort learning starting on Nov. 12, school leaders said. Online learning will continue until at least Friday, Nov. 20.
Burnet Middle School
Following the death of Burnet Middle School Principal Jeremy LeJeune, students will be learning remotely from Dec. 8 through Dec. 14. In addition, all extracurricular activities are canceled until Dec. 15. LeJeune died after battling a rare blood vessel disorder that was likely exacerbated by COVID-19, according to its superintendent.
RELATED: Burnet CISD community mourns loss of middle school principal after testing positive for COVID-19
According to the superintendent, teachers and staff at the middle school that spent time with LeJeune last Thursday and Friday have "been deemed close contact and are being required to quarantine."
Baty Elementary School
Due to recent COVID-19 cases on campus and a number of staff members needing to quarantine, the school closed on Nov. 12. On-campus instruction will resume after Thanksgiving break on Monday, Nov. 30.
Del Valle High School
The high school closed on Nov. 12 and will not reopen for on-campus learning until Monday, Nov. 30.
Fredericksburg High School, Fredericksburg Middle School and Fredericksburg Elementary School
School leaders announced on Nov. 13 that all of the campuses listed above will transition to remote learning. The campuses will be closed until at least through Friday, Nov. 20. The high school and middle school both hit the 2% threshold of positive coronavirus cases. The elementary school currently has 21% of its faculty and staff quarantined or sick with the virus.
School leaders said Stonewall Elementary and the Primary school will stay open.
Lago Vista High School and Lago Vista Middle School will be shifting to online learning from Dec. 11-17 due to inadequate staffing and a substitute teacher shortage due to COVID-19. Click here for more information.
A member of the Lake Travis football coaching staff tested positive for COVID-19, so the Cavaliers will suspend football operations for the next five to seven days, district officials said Nov. 20.
The suspended activities includes the Cavaliers' game against Akins High School on Nov. 20, but there was not a final decision on the rivalry game against Westlake on Nov. 27.
"Due to privacy requirements, we will not be releasing the name of the individual or details that may identify him or her," the district said in a press release.
Vandegrift High School will cancel in-person learning Nov. 30, 2020 through Dec. 6, 2020, due to increased cases of COVID-19, according to school officials.
"During the Thanksgiving break, our custodial teams continued to work and clean the building. We will ensure the facility is properly sanitized and ready for students to return. We anticipate being able to return to in-person learning and student activities starting Dec. 7, 2020."
Previously rescheduled from another date, the Nov. 30 Leander High School football game against Hendrickson has been postponed yet again due to COVID-19. A makeup date has been set for Dec. 3 at Bible Stadium in Leander.
For more information, read the full letter from the school principal to families here.
Liberty Hill Junior High School
Starting on Nov. 17, all students attending this school will start learning remotely due to a rise in cases, Superintendent Snell said. Remote learning will continue until at least Friday, Nov. 20. Students will need to follow their normal schedule in Google Classroom. For more information, click here.
This school district is closing down all of its campuses and moving to remote learning until at least Friday, Nov. 20. The latest data from Llano County shows, as of Nov. 13, there were 75 active cases in the county, and a total of 350 cases since the pandemic began.
Bluebonnet Trail Elementary
This school is closed due to COVID. Students started learning online again on Nov. 12 and will continue remote instruction until Monday, Nov. 30.
Manor Middle School
Manor Middle School will temporarily move to 100% remote instruction for all students effective Wednesday, Dec. 16 after two new positive cases were reported at the campus. Manor ISD said the move to remote learning was a result of the number of staff currently in quarantine. On-campus instruction will resume after the winter break on Tuesday, Jan. 4.
Curbside meal service for Manor Middle School students will be available for pick-up at all other Manor ISD campuses. Elementary campuses pick-up times will be 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., and secondary campuses will be 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., except for Manor Senior High, where pick-up will be at 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. Monday through Friday during the building closure.
After 15 teachers were exposed to a COVID-19 case, sixth and seventh-grade students at Kelly Lane Middle School will be moving to online learning from Dec. 14-18.
The game between Hendrickson High School and Leander High School will be rescheduled to Monday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. because of a positive COVID-19 case among the Anderson High School football program, according to Pflugerville ISD. Hendrickson and Anderson last played each other on Friday, Nov. 13, at The Pfield, forcing the Hendrickson team to quarantine.
Then, on Nov. 30, the rescheduled game was canceled yet again due to COVID-19. A makeup date has been set for Dec. 3 at Bible Stadium in Leander.
Hendrickson (5-2 overall and 3-2 in district) had a Saturday, Dec. 5, game against crosstown rival Pflugerville on its schedule. That game, however, will be canceled due to the rescheduling of the Hendrickson-Leander game. eTix will be issuing refunds via email to those who purchased tickets.
With the cancellation, the Panthers (5-3 overall and 3-3 in district) finish out their regular season and await the outcome of the Hendrickson-Leander game to determine postseason possibilities.
The game between Anderson High School and Weiss High School that was scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 24, was also canceled.
Stony Point High School
The high school has closed its campus due to a number of positive coronavirus cases and close contacts. Students will continue to learn remotely and will not be allowed back in the building until Dec. 1. All extracurricular activities will be suspended during this time.
Know of a Central Texas school closing that's not on this list? Let KVUE know by sending an email to kvuedigital@kvue.com.
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