CVUSD administration building reopens following coronavirus outbreak

The Coachella Valley Unified School District has reopened its administration building nearly two weeks after a coronavirus outbreak among staff.

The district offices opened Monday morning for the first time since Oct. 15 following extensive cleaning and sanitization.

CVUSD Superintendent Dr. Maria Gandera told News Channel 3 that the district is implementing additional protocols, including "decreasing the number of people who can be in a break room/lounge at the same time and decreasing the number of person-to-person meetings."

Valley View Elementary School in Coachella was the only school closed, as were meal distribution centers who had not received their shipments before the office closure

The district first became aware of the outbreak on Oct. 4. There were seven cases among staff confirmed by Riverside County, but the president Coachella Valley Teacher's Association president noted that there could've possibly been 10 cases.

Around the same time as the outbreak in the district building, Adrian Munoz, 42, a CVUSD employee, died due to causes believed to have been related to coronavirus. Munoz worked as a paraeducator at Cahuilla Desert Academy since 2010.

County health officials say his case was not related to the recent outbreak.

Since March, CVUSD has reported 19 confirmed cases of coronavirus among staff. In that same time period, the Desert Sands Unified School District has had 50 confirmed positive cases.

Palm Springs Unified School District has reported 60 positive cases since they began tracking in May. A PSUSD spokesperson added that none of those cases have been positively linked to a work exposure and have been from various departments and school sites across the district.

Stay with News Channel 3 for any updates.