Italy ISD extends winter break due to COVID-19
ITALY, Texas - Students in the Italy Independent School District in Ellis County will get an extra few days of winter break because of a rising of COVID-19 cases in the district.
The district contacted parents and made an announcement Sunday on social media. Students who were supposed to return to class on Thursday now won’t return until Jan. 11.
"Out of abundance of caution, Italy ISD will be extending its holiday break until Monday, January 11th. This is partly due to a rise in Covid-19 cases among our faculty and staff. Faculty, staff, and students will all return to school on the 11th at their regular times," Italy ISD shared on Facebook.
The school district didn’t provide any information about the number of faculty and staff members who have tested positive for the virus.
The number of new COVID-19 cases across the state continues to climb with more than 14,000 new cases reported Sunday.
The seven-day average hit a new high of more than 15,000 on Sunday and there were 50 deaths reported across the state.
The number of COVID-19 patients in Texas hospitals also hit a record high Sunday with 12,563 patients. That’s about 1,600 more than a week ago.