Two staff members at Las Cruces schools test positive for COVID-19
Algernon D'Ammassa
LAS CRUCES - Two additional employees of the Las Cruces Public Schools have tested positive for COVID-19, the district announced Monday.
The two newest confirmed cases of the disease, caused by the novel SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, involved one staff member apiece at Hermosa Heights Elementary and Mesa Middle School, according to the district.
In total, 10 LCPS employees have tested positive for the disease. District spokeswoman Kelly Jameson confirmed that eight of those cases have been designated as recovered and the employees cleared to return to work.
The Hermosa Heights staff member had not been at the school since Sept. 14, the district said, and learned of their positive test result on Sunday. The school site will be sanitized.
Similar information about the Mesa Middle School employee was not made available, but the district said the school was closed Monday and will reopen after the building has been sanitized.
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Las Cruces public schools have been offering remote instruction, relying heavily on online learning, since March, after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham declared a public health emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beginning on Labor Day, school districts and charters with state-approved action plans, in counties meeting certain public health criteria, were permitted to resume face-to-face instruction for younger students.
On Sept. 15, the Las Cruces Board of Education voted to maintain online learning through December. LCPS Superintendent Karen Trujillo proposed to offer face-to-face instruction opportunities for small groups of students in special education, preschool students and groups of students with specific challenges described as "at-promise youth."
Some teachers opt to teach from their classrooms, and other staff enter the buildings as well.
The district said all staff at the two school sites were notified of the latest cases.
Algernon D'Ammassa can be reached at 575-541-5451, adammassa@lcsun-news.com or @AlgernonWrites on Twitter.
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