School District bus route cancelations to change next week

MAT-SU — Fronteras Spanish Immersion Charter school became the latest Mat-Su Borough School District school to close to in-person instruction, with four new cases reported on Monday.

The four new cases were the high mark among all 47 MSBSD schools while Wasilla High School, Palmer High School, and Career-Tech High Schools all reported three new cases Monday. Fronteras’ 28 cases over the last week are also the high mark across the district, which reported 35 new cases across students and teachers district-wide on Monday. There have been 160 cases reported over the last week and 1,364 total since the school year began.

Of the 47 MSBSD schools, 17 are in the medium risk category and may require masks for students and teachers, accounting for 36.2 % of all schools while 29 schools are in the low risk category and do not require masks.

The MSBSD administrative offices reported two cases Monday, four over the last week and 17 total but remain at low risk. There were 10 new cases in Elementary schools, four new cases in middle schools, 12 new cases in high schools and seven cases reported among the remaining schools.

American Charter Academy has the highest absence rate in the district at 47.96 % trailed by Dena’ina Elementary at 48.84 %. Houston Jr./Sr. High School has reported the most total cases with 101, but remains at a low risk level with no mask requirements.

The schools that require masks for students and staff are American Charter, Big Lake Elementary, Burchell High School, Butte Elementary, Colony Middle, Glacier View, Goose Bay Elementary, Iditarod Elementary, Knik Elementary, Meadow Lakes Elementary, Sherrod Elementary, Snowshoe Elementary, Sutton Elementary, Tanaina Elementary, Trapper Creek Elementary, Valley Pathways and Wasilla Middle School.

Bus route cancelations will continue this week, but MSBSD announced that the rolling transportation cancelations will change next week on October 4.

On Tuesday, bus routes will not run for Wasilla area schools Goose Bay Elementary, Iditarod Elementary, Knik Elementary, Meadow Lakes Elementary, Snowshoe Elementary, Tanaina Elementary, the Wasilla High to Burchell High transfer, Wasilla High and Wasilla Middle Schools.

Wednesday, the northern and western Valley schools will not have bus routes. Schools affected by the outage on Wednesday are Big Lake Elementary, Dena’ina Elementary, the Houston Jr./Sr. High to Burchell transfer, Houston Jr./Sr. High, Meadow Lakes Elementary, Redington Jr./Sr. High to Burchell transfer and Redington Jr./Sr. High.

Thursday’s bus outages will occur for American Charter Academy, Birchtree Charter, Fronteras, Larson Elementary, Shaw Elementary and Teeland Middle School.

Students will not have classes on Friday, October 1 for a teacher inservice day.