Parents in the South Butler County School District were reminded Monday to remain vigilant in protecting their families against COVID-19 so the district can continue educating students in the classroom.

Superintendent David Foley sent out a letter saying the district has only had a few cases of COVID-19, and thus far no one have become severely ill or required hospitalization.

“In spite of that good news, we are seeing an increasing number of students and staff members reporting COVID exposures,” Foley said.

He is pleased most of the families who have been exposed have reported it to the district and not waited for the state Department of Health to do so.

But Foley cautioned that in recent weeks, cases have been on the rise in the county and state.

“Keep your guard up,” Foley advised. “When your child is identified as having been exposed, it is for the benefit of your child, your family members, other students and the school community as a whole that they quarantine and self-monitor.”

Not doing so, he said, puts more people at risk of not only contracting the virus, but of schools being prevented from remaining open.

This is an excerpt from a larger article that appears in Sunday’s Butler Eagle. Subscribe online or in print to read the full article.