New data shows Kansas school districts with highest COVID-19 rates among children
Smaller, rural school districts are home to some of the highest COVID-19 infection rates in Kansas, new state health department data shows.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment on Friday released a new dashboard tracking vaccination rates and COVID-19 cases among children by public school district. The dashboard includes all cases among school-aged children, ages 5 to 17, over a 14-day period.
“This dashboard will provide transparent, frequently updated information to help local health officials and school districts make informed, data-driven decisions to control the spread of COVID-19 among our students,” Gov. Laura Kelly said in a statement. “My administration will continue working with our local partners and encouraging vaccinations among all eligible Kansans to beat this virus once and for all.”
The delta variant has led to a surge in cases among school-aged children. The state released the data as 79 schools in Kansas report active outbreaks of the virus. Those under the age of 12 are still not yet eligible for the vaccine.
Late last month, Education Commissioner Randy Watson announced that a Kansas middle school student had died of COVID-19.
The dashboard shows that the highest infection rates are in districts with roughly 1,000 students or fewer. Many rural schools, though, are reporting far fewer or zero cases among school-aged children.
The COVID-19 rate is calculated by taking the number of cases, divided by the number of enrolled students. That number is then multiplied by 1,000. The rate is often used to compare trends in new cases across jurisdictions or school districts of different sizes.
The dashboard does not necessarily show a complete picture of cases within a district. The data does not indicate where a student was exposed or whether transmission occurred in schools.
The data includes all children who live within a district’s boundaries, including those who are home schooled, attend private schools or a district outside of the area.
The dashboard does not include the most recent data, as new COVID-19 cases continue to be investigated.
In Johnson County, all six public school districts have an incidence rate lower than 5 per 1,000, the data shows.
As of Sept. 24, Shawnee Mission, with more than 27,000 students, reported 135 cases, for a rate of 4.9 per 1,000. Olathe, with nearly 30,000 students, had 144 cases, or 4.8 per 1,000. Blue Valley, with 23,000 students, had 69 cases, or 3 per 1,000.
The Johnson County health department previously warned the Spring Hill school district that its infection rate was far higher than surrounding districts. Earlier in September, county health department data showed that Johnson County schools were averaging a COVID-19 incidence rate of about 3 cases per 1,000 students since Aug. 15.
But Spring Hill’s rate spiked to more than 15 per 1,000 students last month. The southern Johnson County system was the only one that left masks optional for high schoolers. All other districts have universal mask mandates. The district also allows parents to sign mask exemption forms, which previously required a doctor’s signature.
But district and state data shows Spring Hill’s case rate has been dropping over the past few weeks. As of Sept. 24, the state dashboard shows Spring Hill, with more than 4,000 students enrolled, had 15 cases, for an incidence rate of 3.4 per 1,000.
In Wyandotte County, the Kansas City, Kansas district, with more than 23,000 students, had 95 cases, for a rate of 4 per 1,000. Smaller districts in the county had higher COVID rates.
The Turner district, with nearly 4,000 students, had 35 cases, or 8.8 per 1,000 students. The Piper district, with 2,400 students, had 19 cases, or 7.7 per 1,000.
The state dashboard also tracks the cumulative COVID-19 vaccination rates among school-aged children by school district.
About 7% of case addresses and 5% of vaccination addresses were unable to be geocoded and are not reflected in the dashboard.
“Sharing this information in an easy-to-understand format will help parents and families understand the risks for COVID-19 in their own school district, empowering them to make the best choices to keep their kids safe in school by wearing a mask, getting tested regularly, and getting vaccinated if eligible,” said Dr. Stephanie Kuhlmann, co-chair of the state’s Safer Classrooms Workgroup, in the release.
Data will be updated on the dashboard every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, according to the release.
An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the number of students enrolled in the Chapman school district. The state health department dashboard listed the district’s enrollment as 121 students. The state education department reports there are more than 1,000 students.
This story was originally published October 4, 2021 at 12:55 PM with the headline "New data shows Kansas school districts with highest COVID-19 rates among children."
