File Photo (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By James Peters

COVID-19

Student absenteeism peaked at 23 per cent in January: Kamloops-Thompson superintendent

Feb 4, 2022 | 2:17 PM

KAMLOOPS — A report coming to the Kamloops-Thompson School District Board of Education next week shows the extent to which various illnesses have affected attendance so far in 2022.

The report from Superintendent Rhonda Nixon states there were 16 school days in January, with student absenteeism exceeding the seasonal average of 14 per cent on all but two of those days.

The day with the emptiest classrooms was Friday, Jan. 21, with 23 per cent of the student population absent.

The district sent letters home to parents at 17 schools in January, telling them their schools had reached an attendance threshold that warranted contacting Interior Health to determine whether its Rapid Response Team was required.

Attendance at Savona Elementary School hovered around 50 per cent for the entire week of January 17 to 21.

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Teacher absenteeism also took a hit last month — and Jan. 21 again saw the most severe shortage, with 239 teachers away. All but 27 of those openings were filled.

The district says it enacted three single-day functional school closures because there weren’t enough staff available.