By Sheby Stewart
Staff Writer
Brandon School District is implementing a new COVID-19 testing program to keep students in school.
“Right now we’re really, really lucky, we have hardly any COVID cases in our district,” said acting superintendent Dan Stevens. “We’re implementing the Brandon School District quarantine test-to-stay program, we’re really excited about this.”
The purpose of the program is so students who have been exposed to COVID-19 at school can continue to be in class instead of having to quarantine for ten days.
“One of the biggest things I’ve heard as a high school principal is ‘when my kid gets quarantined, what do they do for their education’,” said Stevens. “In this program, a kid that is a close contact while at school can now get tested the next day, and if they test negative, they can come back to school.”
The program is optional, but students who opt to get tested would do so at the middle school ITEC center, and would get tested daily for seven days instead of quarantining. As long as they continue to test negative, they can attend their classes in-person.
“They can get the education face-to-face that we know they all truly need,” said Stevens.