After remaining steady at 11 since late summer, the St. Joseph County death count due to the COVID-19 virus now stands at 15. One death occurred the week before last according to comments last week by Rebecca Burns, Health Officer with the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency (BHSJ). Three more deaths were added to BHSJ’s online statistics early this week.

The Glen Oaks Community College (GOCC) Board of Trustees held a planning retreat and regular meeting Thursday morning at the college. President Dr. David Devier and other administrators and staff provided updates on pandemic cases and measures at the college, as well as on several student funding programs provided with assistance from the State of Michigan. Devier also said Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed the college’s 2021 budget at flat funding.

Superintendent Ron Moag said a recent masking policy for all students and staff will remain in place at all Three Rivers Community Schools (TRCS) buildings. At a Board of Education (BOE) work session Monday evening, Moag said state agencies like the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continue to require them despite a Friday Michigan Supreme Court Decision pertaining to the legal legitimacy of pandemic-related Executive Orders from the Governor’s Office.