Towards the end of last semester, Chapman saw an increase in the number of flu cases and other illnesses among students.
This semester, the number of sick students has decreased, but the effect is still being seen schoolwide.
Principal Matt Davis explained the impact of this spread of sickness throughout the school.
“At the end of last semester, it (started) affecting us at the end of November and the first of December. I think we had 15 or 16 students who didn’t take their final exams, which is high because we would (normally only have) four or five.”
Junior Anna Kelley shared her experience of being out sick at the end of last semester.
“When I was out, I missed my Spanish exam. It was just hard not being able to take my exam because I felt like I wasn’t going to be prepared for it,” Kelley said.
Although it seems that a lot of students have been out sick recently, Davis is reluctant to call it a wave of sickness.
“December was elevated a little bit, but January has been low,” Davis said. “There’s been nothing to (cause us to) make major changes, other than cleaning better, (using) Oxivir, washing your hands and things of that nature.”
Nurse Pam Tolleson shared some advice for staying healthy during this season.
“The very most important thing that you can do to prevent illness is washing your hands (with soap and warm water),” Tolleson said. “Anytime you have the opportunity to wash your hands, even if you’re not sick, wash your hands. (Hands) are the biggest mode of transmission that we have.”
Davis has optimism that Chapman will continue to address problems like these in the future with the help of technology:
“We have evolved as a school and as a district to where we have Google Classroom, email and internet access, so it’s not the end of the world if you’re out sick. If there’s one good thing that did come out of COVID, it’s that we have options now, like e-learning.”
