General sickness closes G-L schools until Jan. 18

By Brian Freiberger

A wave of cold, flu and COVID cases made its rounds through the halls of Glen Lake Community Schools leading to cancellation until Tuesday, Jan. 18.
Roughly 30% of staff and 20% of students are out with sickness, according to interim Superintendent Jason Stowe.
“There were quite a few, flat out sick with cold, and no COVID,” Stowe said. “We looked at the curve going up starting on Monday. Then last night, early evening that number was not slowing down.”
As of today (Jan. 13) there were 34 new cases of COVID and 73 cumulative (recovered) cases in Glen Lake, according to a Jan. 12 report from the Benzie-Leelanau Health Department. Internal testing from Glen Lake detected most of the cases reported and no one is reportedly hospitalized from the outbreak.
Several gaps in teaching instruction due to absences would have been even worse tomorrow if school was in session.
“After we discussed it, (closing) made since with the natural gap of the half day (Jan. 14) and MLK (Martin Luther King Day) day (Jan. 17),” Stowe said. “The natural gap created five days to get healthy.”
The closing will be counted as snow days.
Sickness has left the Lakers without much they can do besides weathering the storm.
“With more than ... 50 new cases per day in our two-county jurisdiction, and the Omicron variant surge expected to continue, individual level case investigation and contact tracing are no longer as effective tools with respect to controlling COVID-19 transmission on a population level,” said Lisa Peacock, Health Officer with the Benzie-Leelanau Health Department in a Wednesday, Jan. 12 press release.

  • People seeking COVID testing line up in front of VFW hall in Lake Leelanau. At one point there was as many as 20 people in line.
    People seeking COVID testing line up in front of VFW hall in Lake Leelanau. At one point there was as many as 20 people in line.

A wave of cold, flu and COVID cases made its rounds through the halls of Glen Lake Community Schools leading to cancellation until Tuesday, Jan. 18.
Roughly 30% of staff and 20% of students are out with sickness, according to interim Superintendent Jason Stowe.
“There were quite a few, flat out sick with cold, and no COVID,” Stowe said. “We looked at the curve going up starting on Monday. Then last night, early evening that number was not slowing down.”
As of today (Jan. 13) there were 34 new cases of COVID and 73 cumulative (recovered) cases in Glen Lake, according to a Jan. 12 report from the Benzie-Leelanau Health Department. Internal testing from Glen Lake detected most of the cases reported and no one is reportedly hospitalized from the outbreak.
Several gaps in teaching instruction due to absences would have been even worse tomorrow if school was in session.
“After we discussed it, (closing) made since with the natural gap of the half day (Jan. 14) and MLK (Martin Luther King Day) day (Jan. 17),” Stowe said. “The natural gap created five days to get healthy.”
The closing will be counted as snow days.
Sickness has left the Lakers without much they can do besides weathering the storm.
“With more than ... 50 new cases per day in our two-county jurisdiction, and the Omicron variant surge expected to continue, individual level case investigation and contact tracing are no longer as effective tools with respect to controlling COVID-19 transmission on a population level,” said Lisa Peacock, Health Officer with the Benzie-Leelanau Health Department in a Wednesday, Jan. 12 press release.