The surge in COVID-19 cases in Lafayette County, specifically in Oxford, has caused the Oxford School District to shut down in-person learning at one of its campuses.

Beginning Friday, Oxford Middle School will switch to virtual learning through the rest of the month. Students will be able to return to the classroom for in-person instruction on Nov. 30. There will be one week of virtual learning for OMS students with OSD beginning Thanksgiving break on Nov. 23.

“The middle school changes classes for 7 periods therefore the exposure and contact numbers are higher than other campuses,” OSD public information officer Heather Lenard told the EAGLE. “This is a good reminder that we are not ‘out of the woods’ yet and students should continue social distancing and wearing face coverings when they are off campus.”

The decision comes days after Lafayette County School District’s decision to revert back to their hybrid schedule the rest of the month for Lafayette High School and Middle School.

There are nine positive cases among OMS students which resulted in 143 students and four staff members going into quarantine, according to Lenard.

Oxford School District reported only two new cases for the week of Nov. 2 through 8, both reported to be among students at Oxford High School. Those two cases resulted in 17 OHS students being quarantined along with two more in other departments in the district.

Lafayette County has seen a surge in COVID-19 cases this week as the rest of the state is also experiencing another spike in cases and hospitalizations. On Wednesday, the Mississippi State Department of Health reported 34 new cases for Lafayette County and another 26 new cases along with two deaths on Thursday.