Whitewater becomes latest Fayette school to change schedule

Effective Dec. 7, Whitewater High has become the latest Fayette County school to revert to a hybrid class schedule for the rest of the fall semester, due to an uptick in coronavirus cases. Whitewater joins McIntosh and Starr’s Mill in putting students on a synchronous schedule where classes are divided into two groups that attend classes in real time either in person or online on an alternating schedule. Statistics released by the county last Friday show that 35 students and six staff members tested positive for COVID-19 between Nov. 30 and Dec. 4, bringing the total number of students and staff currently in quarantine to 390 and 14, respectively.

The Board of Education addressed the growing virus levels at its Nov. 30 meeting, with Barry Marchman expressing concern that students are not following social distancing and other precautions outside of school. Brian Anderson said he believes a synchronous option would be beneficial for all students in quarantine.