Progress continues on a new dashboard to let residents track the number of COVID-19 cases in Indiana schools. But giving people the information they want without giving school officials a lot of extra work has been a bit of a challenge, according to State Health Commissioner Dr. Kris Box.
“We originally planned to have a separate reporting system and heard loud and clear from our schools that that was a burden when they were already stressed,” Box said during Wednesday’s press conference. “So we took another look at our existing system and found a way to combine the two and get the information needed to build the dashboard without requiring duplicate reporting.”
Box said the new portal is being tested this week, and schools will be able to start submitting data once the kinks are worked out. For now, schools are not mandated to provide this information, but Box said they could be, if they refuse to participate.
She noted that parents and school leaders have been calling for school case counts to be made public, and she felt that they’ll prove helpful. “The purpose is not to stigmatize a school or to penalize them,” Box explained. “The purpose is not to mandate whether schools are hosting in-person classes or going virtual because those decisions are made locally. Rather, the purpose is to help all of us make the best decisions possible as we navigate this pandemic.”
Box stressed that no individuals will be identified by name, and breakdowns by age will not be made available for individual schools.
