Southern Oregon schools not required to reduce in-person learning amid rising case rates The Oregon Department of Education told NewsWatch 12 that climbing COVID-19 case rates in local counties do not necessarily mean that schools will be impacted. Posted: Apr 27, 2021 1:39 PM Posted By: Jamie Parfitt MEDFORD, Ore. — Despite multiple southern Oregon counties moving to Extreme Risk restrictions on Friday, state education officials say that schools do not necessarily need to reduce their current levels of in-person learning. The long process of bringing more students into the classroom started at a time before COVID-19 case rates began rising again, in what Governor Brown has called a "fourth wave" of the virus. Jackson County Public Health said on Tuesday that there were 600 new cases over the last two weeks, marking a case rate not seen since the beginning of January.