Photo courtesy of senior and opinion editor Ella Mendoza.

San Luis Obispo High School students, staff, and parents were notified of a person on campus testing positive for COVID-19 on March 9.

 The email, sent out on ParentSquare, did not specify whether it was one of the very few students or a staff member due to privacy laws.

 “Each and every time that I’m notified by public health who is connected with SLOHS as a student or employee, I calibrate if and when they may have last been on campus. If they have been on campus during their ‘infectious’ period, I have to, by law, notify staff, students, and parents,” said principal Leslie O’Connor.

  The person tested positive on March 8 and was in contact with several people at the school. Students and staff received a letter notifying them of exposure and recommending they get tested and quarantine for 10 days, according to public health guidelines.

  “I thought SLOHS did a good job at handling the situation and notifying us that a student or staff member that was on campus had tested positive. I have no idea who the person was that tested positive but I was notified that I was in close contact with them, which would have been on Monday, the first day back at practice for the girl’s soccer program,” said senior Ella Mendoza. “The school is being as carefully as they possibly can be while also allowing students to be on our campus in a COVID safe environment.”

  However, plans to return to in-person instruction are not being halted.

  “It definitely was unfortunate that after only the first day of being back at soccer practice, we had to immediately stop our practices. We had practices as well as tryouts planned out for the next two weeks but can’t resume until March 19. I also won’t be able to go to the first day of in person school on Monday which sucks but I’m glad our school is taking all the correct and necessary measures in keeping our staff and students at SLOHS safe,” said Mendoza.

  SLOHS will reopen on the hybrid model on March 15th.