For schools to get back in session, those numbers need to continue trending down.
While the virus is still spreading, local educators are not happy about it.
“This is not an ideal situation. We want to get to green and get into our buildings because its where we do education best,” this according to Medford School Superintendent Brett Champion.
The longtime educator says the best way to teach kids is in the classroom.
But that’s not happening in Jackson County due to Coronavirus.
“We’re only interested in educating kids in the safest possible place, safe for our students, safe for our staff, and safe for our community,” says Champion.
To return to the classroom, case rates in Jackson County must be below 10 cases per 100,000 people for the previous seven days; with less than five percent positivity rate in that same time frame.
Jackson County health officer Dr. Jim Shames says we aren’t there.
In mid-August, the county saw its highest amount of cases.
The numbers have since declined, but Dr. Shames says that wont last.
“The challenges in our community is that our numbers are still a bit high.”
Dr. shames believes mass fire evacuations may make the situation even more difficult.
“People are doubling and tripling up in their homes, people are at the expo, people are in their cars and tents, they’re attending services… We have lots of additional risks of Covid spread happening right now,” says Dr. Shames.
School in Medford had started hours before the Almeda fire began burning last Tuesday.
School was quickly canceled for the rest of the week.
Champion says that makes it even more of a priority, to get kids caught up on their education, and hopefully in class.
“If we don’t start changing some things… We’re never going to get back in buildings… The way its currently going,” he says.
The county’s had 4 straight weeks of dropping case numbers.
In at least one of those weeks, it may have been due to reduced testing.
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