CLINTON — “We need some luck,” said Clinton Unit School District Superintendent Curt Nettles, when talking about keeping the schools open for in-person learning, during Tuesday night’s board meeting.  “Covid rules the day.”

Currently, Clinton schools have been holding in-person classes since Jan. 4. 

“We’ve done well with (the Covid safety precautions plan),” Nettles continued, “but as you know we’ve had a number of close contacts. We’ve had a number of kids excluded from classes because they were close contacts. We’ve had a number of positive cases in families in the community. We still are not spreading the virus between kids here in the school buildings.”

The students who have been positive for coronavirus have been contacting it from family contacts rather than school, he said. 

Maintaining staff in the schools has been the bigger issue, Nettles said. “The high school is where it has taken the biggest toll. We’re running at a pretty slim margin at the high school making it really close for being able to cover (everything). We’re watching things carefully.”

Nettles said the district is also seeing a shortage of bus drivers and recently consolidated a route and delayed some pick up times.

Vaccine clinic scheduled

On Jan. 29, the DeWitt-Piatt Bi-County Health Department will set up a vaccine clinic for CUSD staff. A second dose will be available no sooner than 28 days later. 

Sometime after Jan. 29, Nettles said the district will work with the health department to offer community vaccine clinics for essential workers and senior citizens at the high school. He anticipates the clinics will be offered three days per week from 2-5 p.m. in the west gym of CHS. Further information will be released once it has been finalized.

• Complete story in the Friday, 1/22 print edition of the Clinton Journal or Thursday in the Journal E-Edition.