Two school districts mourn deaths of teachers, one had been diagnosed with COVID

CHARLES CITY — Two local school districts are in mourning after the deaths of teachers over the weekend, one of them having COVID-19. 

== Charles City High School special education teacher Darla Arends died on Friday after being diagnosed with COVID-19 in September. A press release from the Charles City Community School District says Arends had taught at the school for 25 years and touched the lives of many students, parents and staff as a special education teacher. The school district will be providing additional support for teachers and staff today, which is a professional development day. Student counseling support services will be available on Tuesday when students return to school. Anyone who would like their child to visit with a counselor is asked to call the school office at 641-257-6510 or email [email protected]. 

== The Belmond-Klemme Community School District says 38-year-old Jason Englert was found dead in his home on Sunday afternoon. Englert was a talented and gifted teacher. Other details about Englert’s sudden and untimely death were not immediately available according to a statement from the district’s superintendent Dan Frazier. Frazier says the school district is immediately activating its crisis plan with additional counseling and support being available for students and staff when they return to classes today.