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For the third consecutive week, Stanly County Schools reported a decrease in overall quarantines within the school system, according to updated data from the district’s COVID-19 online dashboard. It also reported a substantial decrease in the number of positive cases.

Stanly County Schools reported 256 quarantines for the week of Nov. 20-Nov. 27, a 40 percent decrease from the week before, when 427 quarantines were confirmed. This represents the largest week-to-week decrease since Oct. 17-23, when there was a 62 percent decline in quarantines. It also represents about three percent of the estimated 9,400 students and staff across the district.

Last week’s total is the fewest number of quarantines since Oct. 17-23, when masks were still required and only 154 quarantines were reported. To illustrate how quickly the numbers have dropped, the school system reported close to 500 quarantines about a month ago.

Of the 23 schools across the district, 17 saw quarantine numbers decline. North Stanly Middle experienced the largest decrease with 35 students and staff now back at school, followed by South Stanly Middle with 33 and Norwood Elementary with 32. Overall, six schools saw a double digit decline in quarantines.

Most of the increases were small with only one school, Aquadale Elementary, seeing a double digit increase, with 10 new quarantines.

For the first time since the week of Oct. 17-23, no school had 50 quarantines, though Aquadale was close with 47. By comparison, for the week of Nov. 14-20, three schools exceeded the threshold.

Positive cases identified among students and staff almost fell sharply. There were only 12 positive cases identified within the schools, of which nine were students, down from the 32 reported the previous week.

No school had more than four positive cases last week while 17 schools reported zero, up from 10 the week before.