Effect of the swine flu epidemic in Fairfield mostly is inconvenience as events across the state are cancelled.

With no cases of the virus in Fairfield Independent School District, or area, classes continue as scheduled.

Fairfield superintendent Katie Ryan reports that the district is following guidelines of Texas Education Agency and Centers for Disease Control by not closing campuses unless a confirmed swine flu case is diagnosed, and do a thorough cleaning of school property.

Over the weekend, workers performed additional cleaning of buses, classrooms and bathrooms. Areas of the schools that students frequently touch, such as drinking fountains, are being wiped down more often and antibacterial products have been distributed through schools.

"I don't think it's wise to get hysterical," Ms. Ryan says.

Region 12 Educational Service Center, of which FISD is a part, has set up a hotline for districts to report swine flu cases, and will relay information to schools. FISD also has contacted area districts to monitor the virus.

The FISD superintendent reports that no swine flu cases have been diagnosed in the Region 12 area, or at any neighboring school districts.

In spite of the swine flu scare, Ms. Ryan reports that FISD had its best attendance figures of the year last week as Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills tests were administered—-Fairfield high school hit 100 percent attendance.

"I'm going to do what's best and safest for kids," Ms. Ryan says. "The best and safest, right not, is to attend school."

The superintendent credits school nurses with thoroughly examining students who get sick in school, and checking with parents of students were are out of school because of illness.

"We are having voice-tovoice or face-to-face conferences with all of their parents," she says.

Although school days are continuing with a normal routine, some of the activities of students have been altered.

All University Interscholastic League events are cancelled, or posponed.

The Fairfield high school Lady Eagles softball team was scheduled to play Groesbeck in a bi-district playoff game last Friday, but swine flu postponed the game until next week. The game is at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Corsicana.

Winner of the Fairfield- Groesbeck game must play an area game against Bullard by May 19.

Region track qualifiers from FHS are left cooling their heels until next week when UIL meets resume. The Region III meet will be run May 15-16 and the state meet is delayed until June 5-6, which coincides with FHS graduation.

Early last week the UIL cancelled all region track meets and planned to assign state berths to the top four qualifiers slated to compete at region.

Track coaches throughout Texas protested the UIL plan and region meets were reinstated at the later date. The region meets originally were set for May 1-2 and state was to be held May 15-16.

The state UIL acadmic meet, in which two Fairfield students have qualified, has been postponed from this week until May 25-26 in Austin.

Grapeland and Cayuga softball teams were scheduled to play a bi-district game at Don Posey Field in Fairfield last week and now will play this Friday here.

Events cancelled in which FISD students were slated to participate include a fifth field trip to Cameron Park in Waco and to see a movie on May 1, sixth grade band performance at Sandylake on May 1, student trip to Wal-Mart in Palestine on May 1, kindergarten roundup on May 1, Sandyland District FFA banquet at Brownsboro on May 2, junior high school golf tournament at Bryan on May 4 and second grade field trip to Waco on May 8.

No decision has been made on the Girls' Little Dribblers region tournament at Livingston this week.