ELY - The Washington Elementary school is transitioning to distance learning as the number of COVID-19 cases in the schools and community continue to rise.

Students in grades K-5 will begin a two-week safe learning reset on Monday, March 29. Administrators hope to bring them back to in-person learning on Monday, April 12.

ISD 696 now has 23 positive COVID-19 cases in the last eight days, with two more positive cases of COVID-19 reported on Wednesday, after the Timberjay’s deadline. The Ely community has reported 33 new cases in the last two weeks.

All grades 6-12 students in the Memorial School building transitioned to distance learning on March 19, with a targeted return date of Tuesday, April 6.

“The majority of the positive COVID-19 cases are in the Memorial Building,” said K-5 Principal Anne Oelke. “However, we are watching the siblings of the families very closely and are anticipating further spread.”

In conjunction with the COVID-19 spread in the Ely community, and the increased positive COVID-19 cases in a short amount of time in the local school community, ISD 696 administrators consulted with the St. Louis County Public Health Department on Wednesday to implement the “reset” in the elementary school.

During distance learning, no child care services are provided. There are no extracurricular activities, events or services in the building. The building is shut down.

Meals will be served daily. Pickup will occur between 11:30 -11:45 a.m. at the handicap door on the north side of the Memorial Building. Each student will be provided a free hot lunch pack out (Wednesdays are bagged lunches), as well as a bagged breakfast for the following day. Please call Kim Puzel at 365-1735 to reserve your student’s lunch.

“We will continue to monitor the Ely community spread and school community spread as well as consult with the Minnesota Department of Health and St. Louis County Public Health,” Oelke said.

“We would still like families to report to the school nurse when students are sick and consulting with their health care providers for COVID-19 testing,” she said. “Please continue to call the school nurse, as this will ensure continued data collection for our decision-making. This information is vital for our school to return to in-person learning.”

Ely residents urged to get tested

In announcing the “significant increase in COVID-19 cases" here, St. Louis County Public Health Department officials reminded people to get tested and quarantine if they've been exposed, in order to prevent further transmission of the virus. 

"We know people are tired, and probably have been experiencing information overload about COVID-19 precautions this past year," St. Louis County Public Health Director Amy Westbrook said in a statement.

"But outbreaks such as what we've seen in several of our communities in the last two weeks makes it very clear that we can't let our guard down yet. Vaccinations are making a difference, but we still must all remain vigilant and do our part to minimize the spread of this virus."

In the past week, there have been 33 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ely, which represents 15 percent of the total cases for all of St. Louis County. 

St. Louis Public Health says some of the cases "appear to be travel related" but others are linked to social gatherings and youth sports.