Pinellas County Schools are taking numerous precautions to keep students and staff safe from Covid-19.  The Pinellas County Schools website declares that all parents and students will be notified if there is a case at their school. A precautionary quarantine will take place for any students who had contact with the ill student.

Recently, at St. Pete High, a girl tested positive for Covid-19. Anyone who had contact with her had to quarantine as well. Another St. Pete High student stated that he thinks the quarantine is safe and necessary, but had this perspective.  “I also think it is delaying the inevitable fact that almost everyone will be exposed to the virus at some point. I wouldn’t be surprised if Pinellas County ended up online very soon.”

According to The Tampa Bay Times, schools will be participating in a more “surgical quarantine”, and not everyone in the infected classroom will have to isolate. The article states that health officials and the Department of Education makes the decision.  “The general thinking is that to be at risk, a student or employee needs to have spent at least 15 minutes with the infected person, at a distance closer than 6 feet.”  For example, children who sit within 6 feet of the infected student for more than 15 minutes will partake in the precautionary quarantine. Others are considered safe. As of September 23rd, there have been 21,620 confirmed cases in Pinellas County.