4 Shrewsbury Schools Have Positive Virus Cases

SHREWSBURY, MA — Four Shrewsbury schools reported positive cases of the COVID-19 virus. Coolidge and Paton Schools along with Sherwood and Oak Middle Schools have all reported positive COVID-19 cases along with one person is part of an all-remote program.

Four students and one staff member were reported as positive cases in the Shrewsbury district, according to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

The positive virus cases were announced on Tuesday to the community. Contact tracing took place and Shrewsbury Superintendent Joe Sawyer said "There continues to be no evidence of in-school transmission of COVID-19."

Each school was notified separately and took precautions to sanitize and clean the buildings.

The cases come as the town's COVID-19 case count increased this week, moving it into the state designated "high risk" or "red zone."

On Wednesday, Sawyer told families he plans on continuing the hybrid model, despite the town's risk level elevation, while consulting with public health authorities and closely monitoring changes in case counts.

"Contact tracing has shown clear links to factors outside of the school environment where members of our school communities have tested positive. Noelle Freeman, the Director of School Nursing, and I have consulted with public health authorities about the rise in cases overall in Shrewsbury, and again there is no indication that in-person learning in our schools is contributing to this," Sawyer's letter reads.