Shuswap high school closed due to staff shortages

A Shuswap high school has closed its doors today due to a lack of teachers.

Chase Secondary School has initiated a functional closure because it does not have enough staff to supervise and instruct students.

"We fully expected increased absenteeism due to Omicron and know that higher absentee rates can be especially impactful at smaller schools," a spokesperson for the school told iNFOnews.ca in an email.

The school has 245 students in classes from Grade 7 to Grade 12.

The school refused to disclose the specific reasons for staff absenteeism due to privacy, but did confirm the staffing issue at Chase Secondary was different from the situation at Armstrong Elementary.

"Staff have not walked out due to the number of students not wearing masks," the spokesperson said.

Armstrong Elementary closed Jan. 17 after a handful of teachers walked off the job due to the extremely high number of children in their classes not wearing masks. The school initially said it would close for two days, but later extended the closure until Jan. 21.

Three staff members at Armstrong Elementary are currently self-isolating after testing positive for COVID-19.

School District 73 confirmed that Chase Secondary Schools pupils will return to face-to-face learning in the classroom tomorrow, Jan. 19.

READ MORE: High number of students with mask 'exemptions' force North Okanagan school closure

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