These are the student and staff absence rates in Waterloo region, Guelph-area schools

Last month, the Ontario government announced it would stop reporting COVID-19 cases in schools, which meant school boards were no longer required to share that information.

However, the province said, families would be notified once combined student and staff absence rates reach 30 per cent, regardless of whether the absences were due to COVID-19. The province tracks and reports individual school numbers online.

Here's what current absenteeism rates look like at Waterloo region and Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph schools:

Upper Grand District School Board

Since in-person learning resumed last week, at least 16 schools in the Upper Grand District School Board, on 27 different occasions, reached or surpassed a student and staff absence rate of 30 per cent. A single day counts as an "occasion" for these purposes.  

A spokesperson with the Upper Grand board said it has access to emergency staff and can redeploy staff, if necessary.

"Schools are also prepared to shift temporarily to remote learning as a last resort if the situation requires it," a spokesperson said, noting students who must isolate can learn virtually.

The school board has also launched its own daily dashboard to track absences related to COVID-19.

The Upper Grand District School Board had an average absence rate of 7.4 students and staff across all 76 schools on Jan. 24. That calculation was done by CBC K-W, based on the schools that reported on Monday — the most recent available data. 

Waterloo region's Catholic school board

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board said none of its schools have reached the 30 per cent threshold since in-person learning resumed on Jan. 18. Classes were cancelled due to bad weather on Jan. 17. 

The school board said the majority of schools are below a 15 per cent absence rate, on average.

One school has 20 per cent of students and staff out of class and that's because some students are choosing to stay home, said the director of education Loretta Notten, in an emailed statement to CBC Kitchener-Waterloo.

"We have been anticipating higher levels of absenteeism for both staff and students. To some degree, it is materializing but so far, we are doing not too badly," said Notten, who noted the main factor driving absenteeism is COVID-19 infection or exposure.

"It could be due to the need to isolate, per the provincial screener, a positive result, or feeling symptomatic ... with students, there are perhaps a few more variables, including personal choice, connected to it being the end of the term, ability to connect remotely," added Notten.

Notten said there have been higher levels of absenteeism among custodians and bus drivers, which has forced student transportation services to cancel some routes.

"Our teachers and support staff absenteeism also remains fairly high, but we have been dealing with that struggle most of the year," Notten said.

The Waterloo Catholic District School Board had an average absence rate of 11.9 students and staff across 42 of 59 schools on Jan. 24. That calculation was done by CBC K-W based on the schools that reported on Monday — the most recent available data.

Waterloo region's public school board

A spokesperson with the Waterloo Region District School Board did not provide the exact number of schools that have reached the 30 per cent threshold so far. However, on Monday, Chalmers Street Public School reported 33.5 per cent of students and staff were absent and Grand View Public School reported 30.1 per cent, according to provincial tracking.

"We have created multiple layers of occasional staff to support coverage. Principals will continue to use the existing process for managing staff coverage," a spokesperson for the board said.

The Waterloo Region District School Board had an average absence rate of 13.2 students and staff based on 83 out of 121 schools on Jan. 24. That calculation was done by CBC K-W based on the schools that reported on Monday — the most recent available data.