Cranford Schools Report Positive Coronavirus Cases While On Break

CRANFORD, NJ — Like several North Jersey districts, the Cranford schools remain remote this week as students return after winter break. The schools are set to reopen for on-site/hybrid learning on Jan. 11.

Superintendent Scott Rubin noted in mid-December that holiday coronavirus increases have partly informed the decision.

In fact, Cranford has continually announced cases in the school community while schools were remote, showing that transmission is occurring outside of school settings.

The state is currently in the second wave of the virus.

Just before Christmas, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said that there were 111 fatalities among residents from Tuesday to Wednesday, the highest one-day toll since July. The state also marked a seven-month record-high in terms of total coronavirus hospitalizations, with 3,841 new hospitalizations (3,612 who had tested positive and 279 who were awaiting their test results). A total of 765 patients were in ICU beds and 485 patients were on ventilators. On Dec. 22, 426 patients were discharged from hospitals, and 498 new patients were admitted.

As of Sunday night, 351,000 Americans had died of the virus. (You can see which states had the highest death toll in the past week here.)

Cranford recorded a new fatality in November, bringing its total to 101.

While Cranford schools have been remote and then closed, the virus has continued to spread in the community, and Rubin has continued to report cases affiliated with the schools.

New cases in the schools

On New Year's Eve, Rubin sent an email saying, "The purpose of this letter is to inform you that the District was notified that two individuals at Orange Avenue School and an individual at Cranford High School tested positive for COVID-19. The District continues to work closely with public health officials in order to assure the health and safety of our community. Please be advised that based on the timing of the cases, the Township Health Department has confirmed that there are no close contacts in either school."

Cranford High School had gone remote before break because of three cases.

Meanwhile, as in November, Cranford parents can again make a decision to switch from remote learning to in-person learning in February, or vice versa. If a lot of parents go one way, it can force scheduled to be modified to accommodate the demand, Rubin noted. Read more here.

The state has begun rolling out coronavirus vaccination sites and created a phased plan for who gets vaccinated first. So far, three Union County sites have been announced. Two groups may be the first to get vaccinated this month. Read more: Union County Sites Announced As COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout To Begin

Did you miss our 2020 year in review stories? Here's the list from Union County.

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