Testing clinic key but district has no plans to offer shots

The Port Washington-Saukville School District’s Covid-19 testing clinic continues to be key to managing the pandemic but it will not open a vaccination clinic, at least not now, an administrator told the School Board Monday.

Director of Special Services Duane Woelfel said he has discussed with the Washington Ozaukee Public Health Department the concept of hosting a voluntary vaccination clinic in the district targeted toward children 5 to 11 years old — the latest age group to become eligible to receive the vaccine — but decided against it for now because it’s not needed.

“They (health officials) didn’t want to say don’t do it, but at this time it seems that it’s not necessary,” Woelfel said, adding that there are 10 sites in the county that offer vaccines for children. “We don’t want to step into something that’s not needed, so for right now, we’re just going to hold off.”

As of Monday, four staff members, up from two the week before, were out of school after testing positive for Covid-19.

The number of positive students increased from nine on Monday to 15 on Tuesday, with 28 students quarantined, Woelfel said. 

Earlier this year, Covid-19 raced through the district, reaching the 3% infection rate at which masks are required for 20 days at three schools. 

Since then, infection rates have dropped and remained relatively low.

When asked if the district’s testing clinic has played a key role in helping the district to manage the pandemic, Woelfel said, “I’d like to think so. It’s certainly helped us stay on top of the pandemic.”

The clinic, which offers free rapid-response tests to students, staff members and the people they live with, has helped sort through the confusion of who should be at school and who should be at home during a time when Covid-19 is not the only virus making the rounds.

Students and staff members who have symptoms of Covid-19 cannot be in school. The problem, however, is those symptoms can be the same as those of the common cold or even allergies.

In some cases, students who are symptomatic can return to class within hours after testing negative. 

In other cases, the clinic prevents students and staff members from unwittingly spreading the virus in schools.

“We’ve had students who say, ‘It just must be my allergies’ and by golly they test positive,” Woelfel said.

“I will say the testing site has been extremely active.”