NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – The state is ordering Piedra Vista High School to shut down for two weeks because of COVID cases. They’ve had four rapid responses in the last 14 days. It has up to seven days to comply.
The last day of the school year is Wednesday. The superintendent says that will happen as planned. He says the decision hasn’t been made on when they will start the two-week pause. When it does it will affect the spring sports schedule, which is scheduled through the end of June. The COVID-19 Watchlist is maintained by the NM Environment Department and includes schools and businesses in the state. Those with four or more Rapid Responses in a two-week period are placed on the Closure List and required to close and return to remote-only instruction.
Meanwhile, a Farmington high school became the third of New Mexico’s 840 public schools to face a mandatory, 14-day return to remote instruction in the nearly two months following widespread school reentry, according to the New Mexico Public Education Department.
The Department says about 40 schools have returned voluntarily to temporary remote instruction since April 5 in an abundance of caution. NMPED says on Monday, 14 public schools were on the Watchlist, which is down from 68 on May 6.
“All the metrics continue to show that schools are safe places and are not contributing to community spread,” Public Education Secretary Ryan Stewart said in a news release. “Our safety protocols, including three mandatory closures, are keeping us safe as overall school case numbers decline, positivity rates remain incredibly low and vaccination numbers for everyone age 12 and up continue to increase.”
