www.lsshopper.com • email:lonestarshopper@gmail.com • OCTOBER 21, 2020
Canton, Texas
LON E STAR SH O PP ER From The Free State Of Van Zandt...
GOOD GOSH! CALL JOSH! 903-865-7002 OWNER
Taylor Automotive LLC • Computerized Auto Repair A/C SERVICE AND REPAIR • ENGINE SERVICE AND REPAIR • BRAKE SERVICE AND REPAIR • SHOCKS • STRUTS ALIGNMENTS TUNE UPS AND MUCH MORE!
Rod Taylor
27928 STATE HIGHWAY 64 • CANTON, TEXAS 75103 • 903-567-3948 http://taylorautoservice.com
Eight Texas school systems Several East Texas Area School Districts Have Headed Back To will get rapid coronavirus School tests with new pilot program
(CANTON) Several school districts in Rains, Van Zandt and Woods counties have returned to on campus learning as opposed to virtual learning environments. On Rains ISD website there is a notice that reads as follows. “In the last four hours, Rains ISD has been notified of 2 positive student cases and 1 positive staff case of COVID-19. Due to close contact tracing, we have been directed by the State Health Department to close our Child Development Center for 14 days. Two hundred students must be quarantined as a result of contact tracing. Forty employees have been impacted by quarantine resulting in
the inability to maintain ongoing instruction. Rains ISD will suspend all instruction PK-12 through October 22, 2020. Students will return to school on Friday, October 23, 2020. We are able to do this due to days built into the current calendar. At this time, this action will not require the district to make up any of these lost days”. In Wood County, Mineola ISD made the following statement on their social media page. “In keeping with Mineola ISD’s practices to respond to COVID-19, we are notifying our school community that an employee at Mineola Elementary School has received a lab-con-
firmed positive test for COVID-19. Our employee is at home recovering and working remotely. Due to privacy requirements, we will not be releasing the name of our employee.” “We also wanted to provide notification that two (2) students at Mineola High school have received lab-confirmed positive tests for COVID-19 as well. Both students are at home and recovering. We were notified of one case late in the evening on Monday, October 12th, and the other case early this morning. Due to privacy requirements, we will not be releasing the names of these students.” “To this date, the case count involving Mineola ISD employees and students are as follows: 8 Positive Employee Cases- 7 Recovered, 1 Active7 Positive Student Cases- 5 Recovered, 2 Active.” According to the Canton ISD’s website, they had the following statement. “In keeping with Canton ISD’s practices to respond to Covid-19 we are notifying all student families at Canton High School that an eleventh grade student was lab confirmed to have Covid 19 was present on Canton High School campus on October 5, 2020.Due to privacy concerns we aren’t able to release the name of the student.” According to the letter,”The local health department has been called in on the matter.”
launch of the program: Bob Hope School in Port Arthur, Fabens Independent School District, Grace Community School in Tyler, Granger Independent School District, Lampasas Independent School District, Longview Independent School District, Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District and Ysleta Independent School District. Other public and private schools interested in the program can apply through the TEA no latPartitions made from clear shower curtains and PVC pipe er than Wednesday, Oct. separate desks in a fourth grade classroom at Abilene's Texas Leadership Charter Academy. The barriers are to 28, the release said. prevent children from potentially spreading the coronaWittman said implemenvirus to classmates. Credit: Ronald W. Erdrich/Abilene tation and testing will be Reporter-News “ramped up significantBy Aria Jones, Through the program, ly,” he said, but first any Coronavirus tests with the Texas Division of issues need to be worked results in 15 minutes or Emergency Manage- out in the pilot program less are coming to a few ment will provide the Rapid antigen tests, Texas schools as part of tests to school systems, which can detect proa new pilot program an- which will receive per- teins on the outside of nounced Wednesday by sonal protective equip- the virus, are more prone Gov. Greg Abbott. ment to administer them to giving false negative “As more students return to willing participants, results than other coroto campus for in-person according to the release. navirus tests that use geinstruction, the State of The Texas Education netic material. Texas is working along- Agency said in an email The U.S. Food and Drug side school officials to that it will provide a Administration says that provide resources to monthly allotment of a positive test result on mitigate the spread of tests to each school sys- an antigen test is “highly COVID-19 among stu- tem. The agency said accurate,” but “antigen dents and staff,” Abbott school systems will de- tests are more likely to said in a news release. termine how the tests miss an active coronaviThe program is meant will be conducted be- rus infection compared to help schools conduct cause they know “what to molecular tests.” rapid tests of employees works best for their But Joseph Petrosino, and students who have school and community,” chair of molecular viwritten permission from and each school system rology and microbioloparents. Health experts will provide test admin- gy at Baylor College of have said accessible, rap- istrators to give the tests. Medicine, said in a preid testing could help the “Thank you to the U.S. vious interview that the state achieve substantive Department of Health tests are most useful in widespread COVID-19 and Human Services settings such as schools testing, an elusive public for providing these ad- because the same people health goal for Texas and vanced antigen tests can be tested every three much the country. John to the State of Texas,” to four days, eliminating Wittman, a spokesperson Abbott said. “This rap- the chances of having a for the governor, said id testing pilot program false negative result. the tests are part of the will be an effective stratmillions being provided egy to protect the health to Texas by the federal and safety of students government. The medi- and staff while helping cal company producing to further ensure that the tests said the anti- Texas students have acgen tests require a nasal cess to a quality educaswab, cost $5 and are tion throughout the panabout the size of a credit demic and beyond.” card. ‘Eight school systems are participating in the