Chapin, Irmo and Dutch Fork high schools closed Tuesday due to a high number of staff requesting leave.

The decision to close school buildings to students was made out of an abundance of caution for school safety as several schools experienced a sudden increase of staff absences, the district said Tuesday.

Tuesday was turned into an e-learning day for students at schools.

The District’s board met Monday night in a special meeting to discuss the administration’s request to return to hybrid learning. For the last few weeks the district had returned to 4 day a week classroom instruction.

The board took no action Monday night but was to meet at 4 pm Wednesday to continue the debate.

Superintendent Dr. Christina Melton recommended the district return to a hybrid model for 7th through 12th graders at the beginning of December. In the hybrid model, students are in the classroom 2 days a week and virtual for the other 3 days.

Melton said a rise in students in quarantine and staffing problems were the main concerns for the administration.