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BC High closed for March 12-13 for ‘deep clean’
BC High closed for March 12-13 for ‘deep clean’
Boston College High School in Dorchester announced March 12 that the school would be closed for two days of cleaning after the school was notified that parents of the a student tested positive for COVID-19.
The following is a portion of the statement posted on the school’s website March 12:
On March 11, 2020, we were notified that parents of a student in our community have tested positive for COVID-19. As soon as we became aware of this potential exposure, we notified the Department of Public Health and implemented their son’s quarantine from School, in accordance with DPH recommendations. Fortunately, this student tested negative for the virus, although he will remain in quarantine for as long as recommended.
At this point it is important to be clear that we are confident as we can be, that we do not have COVID-19 at BC High. There have been no reported cases amongst our students or staff.
School Deep Clean on March 12 and 13
As a result of the above information and given the State of Emergency declared yesterday for Massachusetts, we have made the decision to close all BC High school buildings tomorrow, Thursday, March 12 and Friday, March 13, to conduct a deep clean of the school.
Therefore, starting Thursday, March 12, all BC High Campus school buildings will be closed through Friday, March 13. This campus closure impacts ALL activities including academic, campus ministry, as well as co-curricular activities, and athletics. In addition, this closure extends to all external use of the facilities through Friday. We plan to open for a normal school day on Monday, March 16. Ignatian Values Day, scheduled for this Friday, has been postponed.
Students are to access academic work via Canvas over the next two days, where teachers will post assigned work. We are prepared to utilize this online management system to ensure continued academic operations if it becomes necessary to do so over an extended period of time.
As we have referenced in our previous communique, we have already conducted a number of deep cleans, in addition to implementing enhanced regular cleaning of all surfaces, as is becoming more routine at schools across the Commonwealth. Given the news we received this morning, however, we feel it is prudent to conduct an additional deep clean, out of an abundance of caution. We also feel it is important to take the next two days to evaluate more thoroughly a rapidly changing landscape.
Update on Mitigation Efforts
While we cannot stop the transmission of COVID-19, we will continue efforts to mitigate its progression, while remaining focused on providing your son/s with an outstanding education. We understand that this is only possible if we are providing a safe and healthy environment by limiting contact between people where possible.