The Jordan School District shut down in-person classes at two of its high schools — West Jordan and Mountain Ridge — for two weeks because of outbreaks of COVID-19.
At an emergency meeting on Tuesday night, school board members voted to move to online learning at the two high schools beginning Thursday. Both schools were closed Wednesday, and there will be no online classes “to allow students and staff time to prepare” for virtual teaching, according to news releases from the district.
The Salt Lake County Health Department is tracking 26 active cases of coronavirus at West Jordan High and another 22 cases at Mountain Ridge High in Herriman. The Utah Department of Health recommends that schools shut down if 15 individuals have tested positive in the same time frame.
According to Jordan’s numbers, two other high schools in the district have also exceeded the 15-case threshold — Copper Hills with 25, and Riverton High with 17 — but neither was closed for the two-week period recommended by UDOH. Each of those schools closed for two days for “deep cleanings” and then reopened.
The district reports a total of 235 active cases of COVID-19, with 2,123 people in quarantine.
Students at Mountain Ridge and West Jordan were not allowed in the school buildings beginning Wednesday; staff will be allowed in to collect instructional materials. A grab and go lunch was available from 11 a.m.-noon.
In-person classes are scheduled to resume on Tuesday, Oct. 27, after a previously scheduled fall break.
