COVID testing sites will be coming to schools this year with the help of the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity grant. 

This grant gives Warren County Schools $1.7 million to staff the testing sites and to purchase equipment. Director of Schools Grant Swallows informed the School Board on Monday about the grant and all it would be used for.

Swallows told the board, “We’re going to use it for one year to pay our nurses’ salaries.” He told the board the money they save by paying nurses through the grant, they will have for a rainy day.

“They allowed us $275,000 for minor construction,” he said. Swallows said the money allotted for minor construction would be used at the Central Office, “We really want to use that actually in this building to where we can create a drive-thru testing area.”

This grant was not a competitive grant, but the fewer entries meant more money for those who applied. WCS had already been approved for the grant and needed School Board approval Monday night to accept it.

Board member Bill Zechman was quick to make a motion to approve and praised the idea to pay our nurses through it. He voiced some concern on how they will obtain the testing equipment.

Federal programs director Vickie Dodd said, “We are partnering with a state-approved contractor to furnish the test supplies and the test equipment to us at a cost that we can afford to have one in each school and one in this building.” 

The tests will be supplied to all of the schools in Warren County and will be rapid tests. The board enthusiastically supported the grant and approved it.