Elementary school art teacher dies of COVID-19 in North Carolina, officials say

An elementary school art teacher in Fayetteville has died of COVID-19 less than two weeks after being diagnosed, media outlets report.

Mary Ward, 51, taught at Capitol Encore Academy, WTVD reports. She was diagnosed on Nov. 1 after experiencing symptoms for several days, and the school shut down all classes, in-person or online, on Nov. 2.

“She was just really special and had a pretty profound impact on, just not her students, but the people she worked with and someone who will be dearly missed,” Superintendent Will Kneer told the station.

Ward died Friday, but her name was not publicly released at first, Fayetteville Observer reported.

Those who had come into contact with her followed quarantine procedures, Kneer told the Observer, and there have not been any other COVID-19 cases reported at the school.

“We have not had anyone else have symptoms or test positive at this point,” Kneer told the outlet. “We also don’t have any reason to believe the teacher contracted (the virus) through the school.”

North Carolina has reported almost 295,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, including 4,615 deaths, McClatchy News reports. Cases are surging in North Carolina and Monday the state’s seven-day average of new cases hit a record high of 2,405.