Several schools at Kenosha Unified School District are switching to virtual learning this week due to a "surge in employee absences."
According to a district spokesperson, more than 276 teachers called in sick on Monday.
"We do know there are absences are legitimate but the rest of them we do have to investigate," said Tanya Ruder Chief Communications Officer for KUSD.
The district posted to Facebook late last night about the switch, which includes Bradford, Harborside, Indian Trail, Lakeview, Lincoln, Reuther and Tremper.
"It did take a little bit of planning time so we were able to notify families around 10 p.m. that is not our preferred way of communicating with our families but we wanted to get the message out as soon as possible instead of waiting until the morning," said Ruder.
The district did not say if the change was related to COVID-19, but did confirm that two at Indian Trail had tested positive last week.
Students at each of the schools are expected to log in for classes at their scheduled time from Monday, Sept. 21, through Friday, Sept. 25.
The district said it was not sure what led to the call-ins.
The Kenosha teachers union, meanwhile, describedthe current situation as "dangerous and untenable."
"Given the number of positive cases confirmed in several buildings after the first week back, it is clear that in-person instruction will further contribute to community spread and will have harmful, and potentially fatal, consequences for educators, students, and families. The current situation is dangerous and untenable," according to the Kenosha Education Association on Monday.
