BOSTON – Superintendent Carol R. Johnson announced today that two additional Boston Public Schools will be closed for seven calendar days because of concerns about influenza. The John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury and the James Condon Elementary School in South Boston will close tomorrow and reopen on Wednesday, June 3, because of unusually high levels of influenza-like illness.
Dr. Johnson made the decision to close the schools temporarily in consultation with the Boston Public Health Commission and Mayor Thomas M. Menino. Officials said they hope that the temporary closures will prevent new infections and avoid unnecessary illness.
With this announcement, a total of five Boston Public Schools have been closed because of influenza concerns, including Boston Latin School in the Fenway (reopening tomorrow, Wednesday, May 27), the Umana Middle School Academy in East Boston (reopening Thursday, May 28), and the Frederick Middle School in Dorchester (reopening Friday, May 29). Other public and private schools around the state also have been closed recently.
Said Dr. Johnson, “With significant numbers of students out sick with flu-like symptoms, we have decided to close these buildings for the next seven days in order to prevent new infections.”
The O’Bryant serves more than 1,200 students in grades 7-12. The Condon serves nearly 700 students in kindergarten through grade 5. Both schools reported unusually high absenteeism rates today, as well as many student leaving school sick, and follow-up calls to families confirmed that many of the students are exhibiting flu-like symptoms. At each school, there are two confirmed cases of the H1N1 virus. Officials from the Boston Public Health Commission and Boston Public Schools concluded that having so many students sick not only impedes the learning environment but also makes it easier to transmit infection. Therefore, the decision was made to close the schools for seven days, after which time most types of flu are no longer contagious.
Mitchell Chester, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, issued a statement last week pledging flexibility on time and testing requirements for schools affected by an outbreak of influenza virus.
City officials are advising students and staff from these schools to stay at home for seven days and not to congregate at other sites. They also advise that those feeling ill follow up with their primary care provider. Persons without a primary care provider should call the Mayor’s Health Line at 617-534-5050.
To minimize the spread of illness, the Boston Public Health Commission urges the public to:
· Wash your hands frequently with soap and warm water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
· Cover your cough with a tissue or cough into your inner elbow and not into your hands.
· Stay home from work if you are sick, and keep your child home from school if he/she is sick.
· Contact your primary care physician or visit your local health center or hospital if you experience flu-like symptoms.
For more information, visit www.bphc.org/H1N1flu