Bourbonnais Elementary School District #53 (BESD53) reported this morning a case of COVID-19 had been reported among the school community.
In a letter to parents Monday, BESD 53 Superintendent Dr. Adam Ehrman informed families of the positive announcement.
“This morning we were informed that a member of the BESD #53 community has tested positive for COVID-19. We have been working with our local health department and authorities to prepare for such a situation. The last time the COVID-19 positive individual was in the school setting while they were contagious is 8/20/2020.” Ehrman said in the letter.
The school district is working closely with the Kankakee County Health Department to find those who may have been in ‘close contact’ with the individual.
“Some students may be at higher risk due to “close contact” with the person that has been diagnosed with COVID-19. For COVID-19, the CDC defines a “close contact” as “any individual who was within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to positive specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated.” Ehrman wrote.
The district says it will continue to monitor the situation and update the community with any additional information while maintaining the confidentiality required of both employees and students within the district.
BESD53 now becomes the sixth school in Kankakee County reporting cases of COVID-19 among its community. It joins Olivet Nazarene University, Bradley Elementary, Momence schools, St. Anne schools, and Bradley-Bourbonnais Community High School, which first reported a case among its community last Friday.
