If you stopped inside Eagle Achievers Academic Center after school last week, you might think students there were all pretending to be surgeons. Actually, they were attempting to stay healthy and avoid seeing a doctor.

As the influenza bug has hit the SoBoCo schools, area day cares are also battling with flu and other typical illnesses.

Standard is the emphasis on hand-washing, sneezing into your sleeve and hand sanitizer. But Eagle Achievers Academic Center owner Julia White went even one step further recently by purchasing surgical masks for her after-school students.

“We have had about 40% of our kids have something,” White said, “whether it’s the flu A or B or strep. I hoped it would die down after the MLK holiday and a snow day, but it has not.”

After the holiday break, Southern Boone Schools dropped from its normal 98% attendance rates down to as low as 88% for a couple of days, according to superintendent Chris Felmlee. Felmlee says attendance has returned to normal levels in the past week.

~ Find out more in today’s Journal ~

By Bruce Wallace