Streator High adopts dashboard for COVID-19 updates

Streator High School officials have created a COVID-19 dashboard charting quarantines and confirmed positive cases within the district.

They are doing so in an effort to be transparent with the community, Streator Township High School District 40 Superintendent Matt Seaton said.

As of Friday, the district had two staff members and 18 students under quarantine. There are two confirmed cases among students, but they were confirmed positive before the school year began and have not been in the building this school year. One of the students also opted for remote learning.

Streator High students have the option to attend classes in person or to take classes remotely for the semester. Of the 834 students enrolled at SHS, 206 have opted for remote learning.

If a student or staff member were to test positive, Seaton said, the school would follow all health department guidelines.

At this point, Seaton said the school has no plans to move away from in-person learning, but he said the district is set up to go to all-remote learning immediately if necessary.

The La Salle County Health Department noted there is a distinction between those who are quarantined and those who test positive.

Quarantine keeps someone who was in close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19 away from others.

People in quarantine must stay home for 14 days after their last contact with the positive person, monitor themselves for symptoms and stay away from people who are at a higher risk for getting severely sick from COVID-19.

If the health department calls and tells a person to quarantine, it is because they have been identified by a confirmed case as a close contact.

Testing is recommended for anyone who has been around a person diagnosed with COVID-19. It is recommended that a person be tested five to seven days after exposure.

If the test comes back negative, and symptoms do not develop, the person still must complete a 14-day quarantine. This is because symptoms can appear up to 14 days after a person has been exposed.

If the test comes back positive and a quarantined individual is identified as a confirmed case, they will be moved into isolation for 10 days from the onset of symptoms, or if they were asymptomatic, 10 days after the day they went to get tested. A person is no longer considered contagious after 10 days have passed from the onset of symptoms and they have been fever-free for at least 24 hour and feeling well.

Isolation keeps someone who tested positive for COVID-19 with or without symptoms away from others, even in their own home.