Lynden Christian welcomes high school students back to class following COVID outbreak

Oct. 8—While Lynden Christian's preschool through eighth-grade students remain in remote learning for another week due to a COVID-19 outbreak at the school, high school students were able to return to in-person classes a week early, the school reported in a news release Friday, Oct. 8.

"Our two-week closure was changed to a 7-day closure for our high school students who had a documented negative test within 48 hours of their return to class," according to the release, which was sent to The Bellingham Herald by Superintendent Paul Bootsma. "It was implemented for LCHS in consultation with WCHD (Whatcom County Health Department) because case rates in the high school were lower than in PK-8 students.

"If students have a negative test and we implement preventive measures, we can minimize the risk of transmission, keep a healthy environment, and give students the benefits of in-person learning."

Preschool through eighth-grade students are expected to return to classes Wednesday, Oct. 13.

The school sent an email to parents Sept. 28 informing them that classes at all levels would be canceled on Sept. 29, and that remote learning would begin on Sept. 30 due to a "high number" of COVID-19 cases. Lynden Christian's school board received a notice from the Whatcom County Health Department that it intended to close the schools, and the school board voted to start remote learning as a way to avoid a forced closure.

In a Whatcom County Health Department news release last week, the health department said it agreed with Lynden Christian Schools' decision to close in-person instruction for 14 days and it was necessary to protect the public's health.

"The temporary closure of Lynden Christian Schools is an unfortunate but necessary step to halt the spread of COVID-19 in the school environment and prevent further risk to the whole community," said Dr. Amy Harley, co-health officer for Whatcom County, in last week's release. "We support the school board's decision to temporarily close in-person instruction and extracurricular activities in order to quickly curtail the current outbreak so that the school can reopen for in-person learning when it's safe to do so."

The health department determined that the school had "multiple cases and/or exposures in nearly every grade and classroom and several classrooms and grades that met the health department's operating definition of a school-associated outbreak," according to the news release.

The closing of the campus was something health officers are reluctant to do and only done when other measures have failed to stop the spread of infection, said Dr. Greg Thompson, co-health officer for Whatcom County.

"Lynden Christian has worked hard to improve our compliance and increase our wellness team's capacity to better comply with the Department of Health's requirements," Friday's release from the school stated.

The Bellingham Herald has reached out to the health department for comment about Lynden Christian's reopening to high school students.

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