HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Since the coronavirus pandemic began, 206 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed across Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS), according to the school district.
Of those, a spokesperson says five were cases in students. The role of the other 201 individuals within HCPS was not specified.
The latest data was reported as of early last week.
"The majority of cases are from individuals who have come to work sick instead of reporting properly. Our district has 235 traditional schools and a number of other sites where our employees report to work over the summer," the school district said.
In each case, HCPS employs contract tracing to identify any other employees who may have been exposed to someone who tested positive. All areas where the affected employee worked is disinfected with an "approved" chemical and folding mist machine to deep clean the area.
Once the above is complete, non-affected employees are allowed to return back to the area to work.
The school district says no schools have needed to be closed due to any positive coronavirus cases this summer.
All employees who may have been impacted have been communicated with, according to HCPS. It also shared that in some cases employees who have tested positive had not been in a district building for the two weeks prior to testing positive.
School board member Karen Perez posted about the cases on Facebook earlier today saying "I just received this information this morning and feel it’s my responsibility to disclose... "
Perez also highlighted that these cases come ahead of schools reopening to students and asked the community to "understand why this WILL impact your students and families."
Hillsborough County delayed the start of the school year by two weeks until Aug. 24 during a school board meeting earlier this week.
The plan now heads to the state.
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