With cases of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) surging again, some local students missed school days last week. Quitman students did not have school Friday and Yantis closed  Thursday and Friday.

Area school campuses were closed on Monday for the scheduled Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and resumed classes on Tuesday.

Quitman campuses are also closed to outside visitors and volunteers through Friday, Jan. 21 and Mineola is closed indefinitely to visitors during students’ lunch times starting Friday, Jan. 14.

Friday night’s high school basketball games went on as scheduled for Mineola and Quitman, but Alba-Golden’s was postponed until this Wednesday after its scheduled opponent, Cumby, closed its campus.

Alba-Golden reported 12 active cases among staff and 16 among students as of Jan. 14. Mineola reported 85 active student cases and 20 among staff.

Yantis ISD Supt. Tracey Helfferich wrote Wednesday:

“At this time, we are not able to safely staff campuses, including transportation and other district programs. The combination of a review of attendance, the rising number of illnesses, and the consultation with medical professionals helped us make this decision. Classes will resume Tuesday, January 18th, with buses running as normal. We will be taking this time to thoroughly clean all facilities and distance everyone as much as possible.”

Quitman Supt. Rhonda Turner shared the following Thursday morning:

“Quitman ISD is experiencing high numbers of positive Covid cases along with other illnesses; especially among our faculty and staff. For this reason, QISD will be closed Friday, January 14th. QISD has a scheduled holiday on Monday, January 17th. Students will return to class on Tuesday, January 18th. Students will receive guidance from their coaches or sponsors regarding any activities scheduled for Quitman HS. We will be using extra minutes that were built into our calendar so this day will not need to be made up by students.”

Mineola Supt. Cody Mize posted this Thursday morning:

“Our number one goal throughout the pandemic has been to keep our doors open and provide quality instruction and support to our students. We are going to continue to do just that, but we need your help as we move through this surge of COVID-19, strep, cold, and flu season. 

“Starting this Friday, we will close all of our campuses to visitors during student’s lunch times. As before, we will open this up again as soon as possible.”

The Northeast Texas Public Health District reported Wood County had 144 new cases Monday and 711 active cases. Transmission levels remain high throughout the region.

After 122 cases in November the count rose to 204 in December and 634 through Jan. 17.