Roxboro Middle School Student Tests Positive For Coronavirus

CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — A Roxboro Middle School student texted positive for COVID-19 this week, the district announced.

The student is currently resting at home, the district said, and has mild symptoms.

The student was last in the Roxboro building on Nov. 11. Crews cleaned and disinfected any spaces the student visited, including the gym and stairway.

"We are working closely with the Cuyahoga County Health Department and anyone identified as a close contact will be notified by the health department as a part of COVID-19 investigation," the district said in a statement.

Since Sept. 3, six staffers and nine students have contracted COVID-19, according to the district. Seven of the nine students caught the virus while working in a remote-only education setting.

Medical officials with the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, MetroHealth and other hospital systems issued a plea to Ohioans this week, urging them to refrain from large family gatherings — like those typically associated with Thanksgiving.

"As we approach the end of 2020, we are encouraging everyone to help decrease the risk for spreading infection, be it coronavirus or flu. We must make sacrifices today – by limiting indoor gatherings – in the hope of better tomorrows," the hospital systems said in an open letter.

The hospital systems said Ohioans can stymie the virus' spread by:

• Keeping physical distance
• Staying home when sick
• Wearing a mask
• Getting immunized against the flu
• Washing our hands