Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By Mike Barnhardt
Enterprise Record

The number of Davie residents diagnosed with COVID continues to increase, especially among young people, prompting Davie Schools to require all students and staff to wear masks at four schools.
On Nov. 29, 116 Davie residents had the virus; that number climbed to 174 on Dec. 6, according to figures released by Davie Health & Human Services. On Nov. 29, 17 residents age 17 and younger had the virus; on Dec. 6, the number was 38 young people.
The schools are Shady Grove and William R. Davie elementary, and South Davie and Ellis middle, now requiring masks because the number of students quarantined is at least 5 percent of the total student population.
“Davie County board of education has continued to monitor the impact of COVID in classrooms,” said Superintendent Jeff Wallace. “Since moving to optional masking on Nov. 2, cases remained stead until the past couple of weeks, when there was a sharp increase in quarantines.”
At Shady Grove, five students tested positive and 44 were quarantined, representing 9 percent of the 530 students.
At William R. Davie, three students tested positive and 30 were quarantined, representing 10 percent of the 335 students.
At South Davie, five students tested positive, with 52 quarantined, representing 11 percent of the 536 students.
At Ellis, four students tested positive and 55 were quarantined, representing 13 percent of the 439 students.
“According to StrongSchoolsNC Toolkit, students who are properly masked in a mask-on-mask exposure, do not have to quarantine,” Wallace said. “The decision was made to do what we can to keep kids in school.”
The mask mandate will last until students break for Christmas.