WINGATE — Wingate Elementary will be closed for the next two weeks after new COVID-19 cases in the school, Bald Eagle Area School District Superintendent Scott Graham informed families on Tuesday.
Graham said one student tested positive on Tuesday and there is another ‘potential’ student case. On Sunday, BEA reported an adult working at Wingate had tested positive, the first case in the district community.
Wingate will be closed beginning Wednesday through Sept. 30, with the current plan to return to in-person instruction on Oct. 1. Graham said the decision was made after discussion with Principal James Orichosky and school board President Tina Greene.
‘This is a difficult but necessary decision to make,’ Graham wrote.
Students will be sent home with computers and materials, including work to complete on Wednesday. Virtual instruction will begin on Thursday.
Graham said the school will be deep-cleaned on Wednesday so faculty and staff can teach virtually from their classrooms starting Thursday.
All other BEA schools remain open for in-person classes and have had no reported cases. The district began the school year on Aug. 25 with families able to select in-person, remote or hybrid options.
Outside of State College Area School District, Wingate Elementary is the only Centre County public school to date to suspend in-person classes because of the pandemic. State College Area schools are in their second consecutive week of district-wide remote learning as COVID-19 cases in the Centre Region continue to soar. On Monday night, SCASD reported three cases among students.
