Emma Gallegos | Journalist
Data
The number of children diagnosed with COVID-19 has nearly doubled since school started for most students in Kern County. Health experts attribute the sharp rise to several converging factors: rising case rates in the community, increased testing of students, low vaccination rates among a younger population and increased socializing in the community. The increased numbers are creating challenges at school campuses where many cases are being discovered.
High school enrollment grows, while elementary districts struggle to recover from prepandemic levels
As the county's population has grown, overall enrollment in K-12 schools has been steadily increasing in Kern County for a decade — until last year. Local high schools, which were spared the pandemic's biggest enrollment dips, have continued to grow. But a review of the largest local elementary school districts demonstrates that not all schools are back to enrollment levels recorded before schools switched to distance learning.
With few exceptions, Bakersfield has the highest rates of COVID in the county, according to the last 14 days of ZIP code data from Kern County Public Health Services.
Administration shared data with the board that shows quite a bit of variation by class. Kern High School District shared data with The Californian that reveals there's quite a bit of variation in who returned by school site and region.