Gladewater ISD closes for rest of week due to COVID-19 absences

Published 5:32 pm Monday, August 30, 2021

Gladewater ISD has joined a growing list of school districts closed for the week due to student and staff absences from COVID-19.

Superintendent Sedric Clark on Monday afternoon said in a statement that the district’s closure would begin on Tuesday and last through the week. The district’s campuses are set to reopen the day after Labor Day.

The closure also means all of the district’s planned extracurricular and athletic activities are canceled through Saturday. Athletic and extracurricular activities will resume on Labor Day, Clark said in the statement.

Students will not need to make up the days, which were built into the calendar for the school year.

“While we had hoped to avoid any school closures, Gladewater ISD is committed to the health and safety of our Bear family,” Clark said.

South of Gladewater, Leverett’s Chapel ISD on Monday morning issued a statement that it was releasing early for the day due to a staffing shortage related to COVID-19. The district followed Monday afternoon with a statement saying it would close for the rest of the week and reopen the day after Labor Day.

“Recently, we have seen a spike in the number of COVID-19 cases impact our school district, especially on our faculty and staff,” Superintendent Josh Johnson wrote in a letter announcing the closure. “It is becoming more difficult for a school our size to get all the classes covered for those individuals who are out for COVID-related reasons for multiple days. It becomes even more difficult when more and more staff members start to become sick or think they are sick with COVID.”