The chilly season is a time filled with traveling, hot cocoa and maybe a present or two. It’s also the time when respiratory illnesses like the flu spread rapidly. Recently, there’s been an increasing number of student absences in the Archer community due to illness, and in the past two weeks, Archer reported at least 16 active COVID-19 cases.

According to information provided via email by Director of Academic Operations Kasey Nott, the average estimated number of students absent due to illness over the past three weeks was 41 students. Archer’s student body consists of 502 students. The lowest number of students absent throughout that duration of time in one day was eight, and the highest was 67 students.

Nurse Reed McNab said she’s seen an increase in younger students visiting her office with congestion, runny noses and headaches. McNab said her ability to treat students depends on the type of symptoms they are showcasing.

“When students come in with a headache, I am able to give them medications like Advil or Tylenol, but if they come in with congestion, a runny nose, or sore throat, I don’t have any medications here to handle those things, so they’ll typically choose to go home,” McNab said.

Sixth-grader Ninu Alitoro said it’s been challenging to find time to communicate with absent students when completing group assignments for class, and her teachers have had to limit the number of group activities, opting for individual projects instead.

“During one of the projects we were working on, six to 10 students were absent, so [the teacher] put all the absent students in one group and gave them a few extra days to complete it because they were all gone,” Alitoro said. “I know when I was sick, all I did was sleep most of the time and drink hot drinks – most of the time I didn’t leave the bed, so it was hard communicating with [the absent students] because they might not check their emails as often as they do during school.”

McNab said the reason behind the recent student absences is due to the rise in flu cases throughout Los Angeles County. According to the state Department of Public Health, California’s latest positivity rate for flu was 14%, which is above the normal levels for this time of the year. In the past, the percentage of influenza detections in clinics in Los Angeles rarely rose above 5% in the fall season.

“In terms of the absences – it’s really important to know that this year, L.A. County-wide, we’re seeing a huge influx in flu earlier than we usually would. We wouldn’t see these numbers county-wide until the end of December, beginning of January,” McNab said. “It’s due to the fact we had COVID precautions for the past two years – everyone’s immune system became a little bit depleted, and, now, we’re all a little bit more vulnerable to those respiratory viruses.”

McNab suggests that everyone wash their hands with soap and water, use hand sanitizer frequently, stay home if they feel unwell and wear a mask if they’ve been exposed to any sort of respiratory illness.

Senior Lily Guggenheim said she thinks it would be helpful if Archer sent a reminder to students about precautions they can take during this flu and cold season.

“I think maybe some sort of mask email, something might help – reminding people that this is the time where viruses get spread and everyone’s kind of getting sick,” Guggenheim said. “Even if it’s not COVID, a mask is going to help prevent the flu and cold.”