Englewood Herald 121621

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December 16, 2021

ARAPAHOE COUNTY, COLORADO

A publication of

EnglewoodHerald.net

VOLUME 101 | ISSUE 44

Despite fewer reported cases, COVID up in sewage tests Signs indicate more virus prevalence, but vaccinated people may not know they’re infected

Kids are acting out in class while struggling to cope

BY ROBERT TANN RTANN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Testing of wastewater at the Englewood-Littleton sewage plant is finding record-high signs of COVID prevalence in the south metro populace, while the number of people receiving positive COVID tests has dropped — a situation that may show vaccinated people are not getting sick enough to feel the need to test, a Colorado researcher says. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, South Platte Renew, a wastewater treatment plant in Englewood that is the third largest in Colorado, has been on the front lines of helping health officials make sense of the state of the virus. SEE WASTEWATER, P10

BY ERICA BREUNLIN AND JENNIFER BROWN THE COLORADO SUN

Medical Center, in a news release. The new facility, dubbed a “cancer pavilion,” is set to centralize the various oncology services of the hospital’s Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute by connecting two of its East Hampden Avenue medical office buildings. The project is estimated to cost $25 million, with the hospital securing funding from various

Veronica Bell’s classroom devolved into a place of destruction this school year, with kids snapping pencils out of frustration, tearing up decorations and bulletin boards, and ripping math books to shreds. “Then they would say, ‘Oh, I don’t have a math book anymore,’” said Bell, who left her teaching post at KIPP Sunshine Peak Elementary in Denver at the end of October. The chaos escalated into violence at times, including the day a child grabbed two other students and dug his nails into their arms until they bled, leaving scratch marks on their wrists. The fight was over a stolen pencil. In a different incident, a student threatened to stab other kids and staff with scissors. They’re in third grade. As teachers returned to the classroom this year, determined to help catch kids up on academics, they were met with another challenge: students with more severe behavioral problems than many had seen before. Teachers interviewed by The Colorado Sun said there are more outbursts and more cussing in class. Kids are set off by schoolwork that feels overwhelming, and sometimes bolt from the classroom. More than a year of pandemic uncertainty, and less structured time

SEE SWEDISH, P3

SEE CLASSROOMS, P4

Blair Corning, deputy director of environmental programs at South Platte Renew, stands on one of the plant’s clarifiers. Since the onset of COVID, the facility has been PHOTO BY ROBERT TANN sampling wastewater and sending it off for testing.

Swedish unveils plans for cancer center $25M project seeks to centralize services by end of 2022 BY ROBERT TANN RTANN@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

Swedish Medical Center, a 408bed acute care hospital in Englewood, announced plans to build

In Colorado schools, scenes of disruption, destruction

a new cancer treatment center intended to open by the end of 2022. The hospital has been doing pre-construction work since April, according to hospital spokesperson Alyssa Parker, with construction expected to begin in January. “This effort brings together all of the components we have already built in our fight against cancer into a singular, dedicated space,” said Ryan Tobin, president and chief executive officer of Swedish

INSIDE: VOICES: PAGE 12 | LIFE: PAGE 14 | CALENDAR: PAGE 17 | SPORTS: PAGE 20

REIMAGINING ‘NUTCRACKER’ Colorado Ballet’s production gets new garb P14


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