Individual at high school in Harwich tests positive for COVID-19

HARWICH, Mass. — A person at Monomoy Regional High School in Harwich has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to a release from the Monomoy Regional School District.

All students and staff known to have been in close contact or in classrooms with the individual have been contacted to talk about the need to quarantine and next steps, the release said.

District officials are in contact with the local board of health and are following health and safety protocols. The release said the board of health and VNA have started contact tracing protocols.

All students and staff who attended classes with the individual will work remotely for the near future and will quarantine for the next 14 days.

“Given that we maintain 6 foot spacing in classrooms, we greatly reduce the number of individuals potentially meeting the CDC definition of a close contact for coronavirus, which is defined as those who have been within 6 feet of the person for at least 15 minutes,” Monomoy Superintendent Dr. Scott Carpenter said in the release.

"After watching each of our schools operate over the past week, we’ve all been impressed with how well our student body and staff have been closely adhering to the safety protocols of mask wearing, hand washing, and physical distancing.

“These measures, taken in combination, greatly reduce the risk of additional transmission,” Carpenter said.

The school district said it sanitizes every classroom each night. To prevent further spreading of the virus, additional sanitation will happen at the high school this weekend in the areas that the individual who tested positive frequented.

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