Mooresville Schools Suspend Football Workouts Due To COVID-19

MOORESVILLE, NC — Mooresville schools suspended all co-curricular activities Monday, citing the risks of novel coronavirus, as COVID-19 continues to spread throughout the state and community. The decision impacts all of the Mooresville Graded School District's ongoing optional summer activities, such as football workouts, ROTC hikes and band camp.

"We have made the decision to suspend optional co-curricular activities (this includes athletics, band, ROTC, etc) effective today," Mooresville Graded School District's said in a statement, via Facebook. "This decision was made due to the increase in COVID-19 cases across the county and state. This decision was not a reaction to a positive test but simply a preventative measure."

State public health officials in North Carolina said Monday that the spread of novel coronavirus had grown to 87,528 confirmed cases — 6,197 more cases than reported Friday. The state's COVID-19 death toll also increased over the weekend to 1,510, an increase of 31 lives lost to the virus throughout the state since July 10.

SEE ALSO: 31 COVID-19 Deaths, 6,197 New Cases Over Weekend In NC

As of Monday, there were 1,138 confirmed cases of COVID-19 reported in Iredell County, according to North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services.

The impact of COVID-19 on extracurricular activities is disruptive, according to MGSD.

"Each time an individual exhibits symptoms, there is a turn-around time of at least three days to receive test results. This leaves us in limbo when deciding how to proceed with activities," the school district said. "We have decided at this time that the risks outweigh the benefits for our staff and students. "

Gov. Roy Cooper is expected to release this week details about how schools will resume instruction next month.

Last month, state public health officials unveiled new guidance for schools, outlining possible scenarios for how classed could resume in the upcoming academic school year. Under the new interim guidance released by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, K-12 public schools are preparing for three possible scenarios: resuming with minimum social distancing, resuming with moderate social distancing or resuming with remote learning only.

SEE ALSO: No Decision On School Openings As NC Sees Record COVID-19 Jump