KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Families with students in Knox County Schools will soon be able to better track how many COVID-19 cases are affecting the district.
Officials with Knox County Schools said they planned to reimplement a COVID-19 data dashboard starting Monday. They said the dashboard will include the number of active cases among students and staff that have been confirmed by the Knox County Health Department.
Starting Monday, families will also start getting notifications from their child's principal if there is a confirmed case at their school. Details about what information would be included were not immediately available.
The dashboard was an important tool for many families during the 2020-2021 school year. It displayed data like the number of students who had reported cases of COVID-19 and showed information about different parts of the school system. For example, it showed information about whether the school had sufficient substitute or custodial staffing
Information about whether the dashboard would continue displaying that information this year was not immediately available.
The hyperlink to the dashboard was also not available Friday afternoon, since it had not gone live yet. This story will be updated when the link is available.
During a school board meeting, officials also agreed that the dashboard would be a useful tool for families as they decide on precautions to take as COVID-19 cases rise across Knox County.
Superintendent Bob Thomas previously said that KCS will also not conduct contact tracing for COVID-19 cases. Instead, he said it would be handled through the Knox County Health Department.
He also said that the district would not be able to provide a virtual learning option for students in isolation or quarantine like KCS did last year. He said the Tennessee Department of Education does not give districts that choice.