'These situations happen': LaGrange leaving school illness spike to administrators, AHS

Alberta's education minister will not intervene with mask mandates or by closing schools after a significant increase in school absences in Edmonton.

On Monday, more than 21,000 teachers and students were out sick, leading a Catholic superintendent to send a letter home explaining that some online learning is possible with absentee rates at 15 per cent.

Edmonton Public Schools officials said they were doing everything they can to maintain in-person classes, but some events could be moved online or cancelled altogether to reduce contact amongst students.

On Wednesday, the public system reported 12.65 per cent of students were away, down slightly from 13.18 per cent on Monday. The absentee rate on Nov. 1 was 7.54 per cent.

"At this point in time I do not anticipate going back to provincial-wide direction," Education Minister Adriana LaGrange told CTV News Edmonton Friday.

"These situations happen. Sometimes we have flu outbreaks, rash outbreaks, gastrointestinal issues that come forward and so, of course, school authorities want to be able to deal with these situations."

Many of the absences are being attributed to colds, COVID-19, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

A local pediatrician said she hasn't seen a spike in illness quite like this in 10 years of practice.

Dr. Tehseen Ladha suggests the province consider implementing short-term masking mandates until respiratory illnesses peak for the season. Upgrading air filtration systems would also help, she said.

Last month, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she will "not permit any further masking mandates of children."

The safety of students and staff is a top priority for LaGrange, but she's confident school administrators and Alberta Health Services can handle the situation.

"We have gone back to pre-pandemic protocols and policies and procedures. The school authorities, this is something they've dealt with on an ongoing basis," the minister stated.

When new legislation takes effect in June 2023, LaGrange said schools will be able to shift to online learning without provincial approval.

Both the public and Catholic divisions were on fall break Friday until Wednesday. Officials hoped that would give sick students and staff a chance to recover and get back to class.

With files from CTV News Edmonton's Saif Kaisar