ORLANDO, Fla. — In-person classes start in Orange County on Friday, and at least 192 cases of COVID-19 among school staff have been confirmed in the last three months.

According to the Orange County School District, that’s around 4-percent of the people who’d been working.

This information was released the night before students enrolled in face-to-face learning return to campuses.

Freedom High school teacher and union bargaining member Nicholas Anderson said they knew COVID-19 was already in the schools.

But now they have the proof.

“Unfortunately everything that health experts said would come to pass, is already coming to pass,” Anderson said.

“Just knowing that people saw this data, and that didn’t give them pause, um, is upsetting to me,”

Union president Wendy Doromal says they believe the district is still holding back.

 “The district should be transparent so that people can make a decision,” she asserted.

The OCCTA put in an open records request to find out how many confirmed COVID-19 cases were among the Orange County Public Schools and at which schools.

When the district denied the request, OCCTA took OCPS to court, and a judge ordered the district to hand over the records in 48 hours, which it did. Those records show that at least 192 people at certain schools and work sites across the district tested positive for COVID-19.

In an emailed response to questions from Spectrum News, Orange County Public Schools said it wanted to put the numbers in context.

Of the 4,529 employees working at the time between June 1 through August 19, there were 192 employees who tested positive for COVID-19 at various times during that period. That is a 4.2 percent positivity rate during a two and a half month period. 

We also asked the union members about the families who believe face-to-face learning is their best option, Anderson said it’s important that they have all the facts.

“They need to be aware of the reality of what is happening.”

The district has implemented stringent cleaning procedures at schools to prevent possible spread.

But Anderson said if such a high number of cases has been reported before students return, he can only imagine what will happen when campuses reopen.

“Every work site has and will continue to be affected by this,” Anderson said.

Many parents wanted face-to-face learning to start as soon as possible for various reasons. Some must return to work and others have a child who needs special services.

Many teachers have said they are afraid to go back because they do not want to catch the virus, and Anderson said the information obtained Thursday will confirm those fears.

Response to PRR (Redacted) on Scribd