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Covid-19: Four Jersey Shore Schools Close After Students Test Positive

Positive coronavirus cases prompted two Central Jersey districts to close schools Thursday.

Middlesex County Vocational & Technical High School

Middlesex County Vocational & Technical High School

Photo Credit: Google Maps

A student at a Little Silver school Monmouth County tested positive for the coronavirus, forcing officials to move students to remote teaching from home after two days of in-person classes. Little Silver's closure order was limited to part of Markham Place School's sixth grade.

A freshman at the East Brunswick campus of Middlesex County Vocational and Technical Schools also tested positive for COVID-19, forcing the entire school district to switch to all-remote learning for at least two weeks.

Students at Vocational Tech's other Middlesex County campuses in Edison, Perth Amboy, Piscataway and Woodbridge are not affected by East Brunswick's shutdown and are continuing a mix of in-person and at-home instruction, school officials said.

In a letter to parents, Little Silver Superintendent Michael Ettore said he learned on Wednesday night that a sixth-grader from the Markham Place School had the COVID-19 virus. 

“Cleaning and disinfecting of all exposed areas has been completed," Eltore said. “The status of this situation is fluid and will be closely monitored each day."

Gov. Phil Murphy allowed schools to pick remote-only learning during the pandemic -- or a mix of in-person teaching for the 2020-21 school year. 

More than 100 school districts chose online-only instruction across New Jersey. Other school districts have started with a hybrid of at-home and in-class schooling on alternate days to avoid spreading coronavirus.

Under New Jersey health department rules, schools with one positive test can stay open if students and staff who had close contact with the infected person stay home for two weeks. 

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