TEXAS, USA — Data entry errors are the reason the Texas COVID-19 school tracker has been removed from the state's website. Just five days ago, the Texas Department of State Health Services published a database that broke down active COVID-19 cases by school district.
There's no definitive date on when the corrections will be made or when the tracker will be available again.
The state department said, on Sept. 24, an error was discovered in the COVID-19 school tracker database. The state said they've pinpointed the errors, which happened through data entry and when importing numbers.
Based on the state's original numbers we reported in Southeast Texas, from July 27 to September 20, 100 students, out of more than 59,000, have had the virus.
So, will that number go up or down? It's a questions 12News investigator Lauren Hensley brought to the state, which they declined to answer.
The state said in part they are working to "present the most complete picture of COVID-19 cases."
However, the Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA) was willing to provide more information.
“Our reaction is still a lot of concern, interpretation and fear. The information that is being passed on to our educators and the urgency we don’t see from the state,” said Ovidia Molina with the TSTA.
Starved for information, Texas teachers started their own crowd-sourced COVID-19 tracker. They said the numbers could help identify any trends, but it's what happens next that Molina says is so important.
“Our district’s looking at it to look at their safety polices and make it stronger? or is the state looking at it to see where they are going to be more supportive? What are we doing with that information and how is that information keeping me safe,” Molina said.
