
SARS-CoV-2 Infections and Incidence at a North Carolina Pre-Kindergarten-12 School During In-Person Education: August 2020 to January 2021.
BACKGROUND: School closures were initially believed to mitigate SARS-CoV-2, but instead may have had a limited role in reducing community SARS-CoV-2 transmission. We describe a single school's experience with in-person education during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: From August 17, 2020 through January 23, 2021, we conducted a prospective study at a private pre-kindergarten through 12th grade (PreK-12) school in North Carolina. The school employed numerous SARS-CoV-2 mitigation measures, including mandatory masking and physical distancing without mandated laboratory screening tests. We analyzed de-identified contact tracing data collected by the school. RESULTS: Seventy-five primary cases were reported among the 2110 students, faculty, and staff during the study period. Twenty-one (28%) of the primary cases were on-campus during their infectious periods; however, no classroom close-contacts subsequently reported a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result. Two secondary cases likely resulted from unmasked exposure at a school athletic event. There was no correlation between community incidence and secondary transmission in the school. CONCLUSIONS: Despite high rates of SARS-CoV-2 community incidence during the study period, routine mitigation practices including daily health screenings, mandatory face coverings, and efficient contact tracing contributed to minimal secondary SARS-CoV-2 transmission within an urban PreK-12 school. The limited school-associated transmission occurred when masks were not used during athletic events.
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- Schools
- SARS-CoV-2
- Public Health
- Prospective Studies
- Pandemics
- North Carolina
- Incidence
- Humans
- Child, Preschool
- COVID-19
Citation

Published In
DOI
EISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Start / End Page
Location
Related Subject Headings
- Schools
- SARS-CoV-2
- Public Health
- Prospective Studies
- Pandemics
- North Carolina
- Incidence
- Humans
- Child, Preschool
- COVID-19