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Cumberland County Public Schools (CuCPS) has extended students’ return to virtual-only learning from one week to the remainder of the month following COVID-19 cases in the school employee population.

After a social media post made by school officials last week, students were instructed they would be attending virtual-only classes from Wednesday, Jan. 13 to the end of the week after a school nutrition employee from the middle/high school tested positive for the virus.

Previously, CuCPS was one of the only schools in the area in which students were attending in-person in a hybrid format.

But that one week of virtual learning turned into the remainder of the month after CuCPS Superintendent Dr. Chip Jones took to the school Facebook page Thursday, Jan. 14, to inform families the temporary suspension of in-person classes was being extended.

Jones said Thursday, Jan. 14, the school had been informed of two additional staff members who had tested positive for COVID-19. The employees, he said, were a high/middle school nutrition staff member and an elementary school employee.

Jones also said Thursday the county had been informed by the health district of an upswing in cases in the community.

“Therefore, we have decided to remain in remote learning until Monday, Feb 1, 2021,” he added.

“The decision to go remote until February 1, 2021, was made due to the positive COVID-19 cases in our school nutrition department, staff members having to quarantine and ensuring we have adequate staff to operate the division with both remote and in-person instruction,” Jones added Monday, Jan. 18. “Over the next two weeks will continue to monitor our local health data and communicate with the Piedmont Health District regarding COVID-19.”