By Jon King / jking@whmi.com


As case rates continue to soar across Michigan, 84 new COVID-19 outbreaks were reported at schools in the state, including six in Livingston County.

According to data released Monday by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, 15 students and one staff member were infected with the virus at school or at a school-related function in Livingston County. They include 9 students at Brighton High School, five students at Hartland High School as well as a student and a staff member at the IXL Hamburg pre-school. Also reporting an outbreak were Livingston Classical Academy in Whitmore Lake, which had six students infected, and South Lyon High School, with three students infected.

Outbreaks have increased 47 percent over the last two weeks in Michigan, which is seeing a surge of COVID infections. Monday was the 23rd straight day that the seven-day average of new cases in Michigan increased, and the fourth straight day the average was more than 5,000. It is also the highest seven-day average since Dec. 9. Livingston County reported 217 new cases on Monday.

State health officials said last week that despite the increases, there are no plans to close schools again, at least partly because most teachers have now been fully vaccinated. However, some districts are deciding to return to fully remote learning as a precaution, including in Ingham County, where the Health Department strongly recommended districts avoid in-person instruction for students in grades 6-12 next week when most schools there return from spring break.