State reports coronavirus cases within school district boundaries

COVID-19 cases among school-age children and young adults have risen in the past two weeks, according to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

The state tracks virus cases of those age 5 to 19 within a school district’s geography. While the numbers provide a snapshot of the prevalence of the disease within a geographical area, the numbers do not necessarily directly correlate to virus cases within a school district because not all children who live in a district’s geographic boundary attend that particular district. Also, young adults through age 19 may not attend any school.

Many of the region’s school districts extend beyond the boundaries of one county and therefore appear on more than one county’s report.

In Cape Girardeau County, Cape Girardeau 63 School District’s boundary included at least 160 people who have contracted the virus, an increase of 30-plus in the past 14 days, ending Oct. 6. Perry County 32 School District’s boundary accounted for 129 cases, an increase of between one and 10 cases. There were 93 cases in the Jackson district’s boundary, an increase of 11.

Other case counts within school district boundaries in the county were: Woodland R-IV, 26-plus; Chaffee R-II, 19; Scott City R-I, 14-plus; Advance R-IV, Meadow Heights R-II, Bell City R-II and Oran R-III, 11; and Delta R-V, Leopold R-II and Oak Ridge R-VI, 10. There were no cases reported within the boundaries of Altenburg 48, Kelso C-7 or Nell Holcomb R-IV districts.

The Sikeston R-VI School District reported the most cases in Scott County, 123, an increase of 12. New Madrid County R-I had 35 cases, and Charleston R-I reported 33 cases.

Other case counts within school district boundaries in the county were: Chaffee R-II, 19; Scott City R-I, 14-plus; Scott County R-IV, 12; Bell City R-II and Oran R-III, 11; and Scott County Central, Richland R-I and Delta R-V, one to 10 cases. Kelso C-7 reported no cases.

In Perry County, Perry County 32 reported 129 cases, while Farmington R-VII reported 84-plus cases, an increase of 20. Fredericktown R-I reported 33-plus cases, and Ste. Genevieve County R-I reported 31 cases.

Other case counts from the county were: Meadow Heights R-II, 11; and Oak Ridge R-VI, one to 10 cases. Altenburg 48 reported no cases.

Dexter R-XI reported 39 cases in Stoddard County, and other districts reported additional cases: New Madrid County R-I, 35; Malden R-I, 24; Puxico R-VIII and Campbell R-II, 22; Greenville R-II, 14-plus; Advance R-IV, Oran R-III and Bell City R-II, 11; and Twin Rivers R-X, Bloomfield R-XIV, Delta R-V and Richland R-I, one to 10 cases. Zalma R-V reported no cases.

In Bollinger County, Woodland R-IV reported 26-plus cases, and Marquand-Zion R-VI reported one to 10 cases. Other cases within the county included: Fredericktown R-I, 33-plus; Woodland R-IV, 26-plus; Puxico R-VIII, 22; Greenville R-II, 14-plus, Meadow Heights R-II and Advance, 11; and Delta R-V, Leopold R-III and Oak Ridge R-VI, one to 10 cases.