Coronavirus → COVID-19 Dashboard
MCPS has developed a health metrics grid for a phased-in return to in-person instruction. The grid is aligned with CDC guidelines and was developed in consultation with Montgomery County health officials. We remain committed to providing a high-quality education to all MCPS students in the virtual model. We will continue to thoughtfully plan and collaborate with the Board of Education, MCPS staff and the community on our reopening efforts, while keeping safety at the forefront of all we do.
This is a map that indicates Virtual versus In Person Learning For K-12 Public Schools Across the US. The service actively monitors 1,200 districts, including the 200 largest school districts.
To see the tracker map and learn more. (External Resource)
The CDC receives forecasts of new reported COVID-19 cases over the next 4 weeks from 30 modeling groups that are ensembled on their website.
To see the forecast models and learn more. (External Resource)
June 8, 2021 - Community Notification: COVID-19 Case at Briggs Chaney Middle School
June 8, 2021 - Community Notification: COVID-19 Case at William B. Gibbs Elementary School
June 4, 2021 - Community Notification: COVID-19 Case at Stone Mill Elementary School
June 1, 2021 - Community Notification: COVID-19 Case at Wheaton Woods Elementary School
May 28, 2021 - Community Notification: COVID-19 Case at Summit Hall Elementary School
Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) is committed to providing high-quality instruction and keeping all students and staff safe. Surging COVID-19 infection rates across the nation and in our region have required school districts across the country to revise and adjust recovery plans for the start of the 2020-2021 school year. MCPS remains committed to follow applicable guidelines from the Maryland Department of Health, our local health department, and the CDC for safe reopening of in-person instruction. The purpose of this dashboard is to provide the Montgomery county community with identified health metrics that will guide our conversations about the safe return to in-person learning.
The following resources provide guidance for the safe reopening of in-person learning. These resources provide multiple health metrics that together display data to be used to guide the continued conversations about the safe return to school buildings and offices.
The New Cases per 100K for the last 14 days gauge is one of the CDC core indicators. This measure displays the number of new cases per 100,000 people within the last 14 days and is calculated by adding the number of new cases in the county in the last 14 days divided by the population in the county and multiplying by 100,000. The second New Case Rate is used by the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services and is an average of the past 14 days divided by the county population and multiplied by 100,000. This is the New Case Rate used in the Health Metrics Grid for Phased-in Return to In-Person Instruction. They are similar ways of quantifying new COVID cases.
The two measures look at different aspects of COVID test positivity. The Percentage of Tests Positive in the Last 14 Days measure represents one of the CDC’s core indicators. The rate is calculated by dividing the number of positive tests in the last 14 days by the total number of tests in the last 14 days and multiplying by 100.
The 14-Day Average Test Positivity Rate is a key component of the MCPS Health Metrics Grid for Phased-in Return to In-Person Instruction. This measure is a rolling average of the daily test positivity rate.
MCPS pulls COVID surveillance data from the Maryland GIS Data Catalog. The data sets are updated daily during the 10 a.m. hour.. The MCPS Staff COVID data is updated weekly on Monday morning.
There are many variables that go into the display of COVID data. Where the data is pulled, how it is calculated and how often the data is updated are just a few of the factors. MCPS is coordinating with other school systems and the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), and has elected to pull data from the Maryland GIS Data Catalog. This data source is also used by Montgomery County Government and the State of Maryland. MCPS calculates measures based on published guidance from the CDC, as well as from DHHS. MCPS has been advised to use a 14-day average for both the New Case Rate and the Positive Test Percentage. Other dashboards may use a seven -day average rate, which is more influenced by spikes and dips in the data.
While MCPS is 100% virtual, the staff COVID data will be updated weekly by 10 a.m. on Mondays. MCPS will continue to use other forms of communication when a staff member's exposure affects the larger community. MCPS has no plans to display student COVID surveillance data while in a virtual model, but will revisit this decision as we implement a hybrid or in-person instructional model.
While MCPS has adopted and put into place all five of the key Mitigation Strategies outlined by the CDC, we cannot ensure that these strategies have been applied correctly and consistently 100% of the time.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, states, tribes, localities, territories and school districts have asked CDC for guidance to inform decision-making about when and how to safely open schools. Given the likely association between levels of community transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and risk of SARS-CoV-2 exposure in schools 1,16, a first step in determining when and how it is safe to reopen involves assessing the level of community transmission. School administrators, working with local public health officials, should assess the level of risk in the community and the likelihood of a case in a school facility, the likelihood that a case would lead to an outbreak, and the consequences of in-school transmission.
CDC recommends the use of two measures of community burden to determine the level of risk of transmission:
The two measures of community burden should be used to assess the incidence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the surrounding community (e.g., county) and not in the schools themselves. If the two indicators suggest different levels, the actions corresponding to the higher threshold (in Table 2) should be chosen. The transmission level for any given location will change over time and should be reassessed weekly for situational awareness and to continuously inform planning.
Blue
Yellow
Orange
Red
1 If the two indicators suggest different levels, the actions corresponding to the higher threshold should be chosen. County-level data on total new cases in the past 7 days and test percent positivity are available on the County View tab in CDC’s COVID Data Tracker.
2 Total number of new cases per 100,000 persons within the last 7 days is calculated by adding the number of new cases in the county (or other community type) in the last 7 days divided by the population in the county (or other community type) and multiplying by 100,000.
3 Percentage of positive diagnostic and screening NAATs during the last 7 days is calculated by dividing the number of positive tests in the county (or other administrative level) during the last 7 days by the total number of tests resulted over the last 7 days. Additional information can be found on the Calculating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Laboratory Test Percent Positivity: CDC Methods and Considerations for Comparisons and Interpretation webpage.
4 Previously, CDC provided guidance for schools through the Indicators for Dynamic School Decision-Making. The current indicators and thresholds are an update to that document that reflect a focus on the past 7 days, and four (rather than five) categories of community transmission.
Very High Risk of Transmission
>15
High Risk of Transmission
>10 to 15
>15%
>10 to 15%
The 14 day cumulative cases is a total number of cases reported during the past 14 days for each county ZIP Code. If no ZIP Code is selected, the graph will display data from all ZIP Codes. When a ZIP Code is selected on the map visual, historical data for that area will be displayed on the chart. The map visual is color coded based on equal percentage thresholds documented below.
Highest 20%
>=80%
Second Highest 20%
>60 to 79%