Note: This article has been updated to reflect the latest number of absences as of 3:30 p.m. today. Also, the Senior Night girls volleyball match vs. Judah Christian scheduled for Friday at Kenney Gym has been canceled. It will take place Monday night beginning at 6. Also canceled: Friday's subbie boys basketball practice and Saturday's girls swim meet at O'Fallon.

URBANA — Despite the fact that student absences due to illness have increased from 21 on Monday to 91 today, Uni has no plans to cancel school.

Director Jeff Walkington sent the following letter to students and staff shortly before lunch today. At that time, 69 students had been reported absent; the number increased as 22 more students left with flu-like symptoms as the day went on.

We are not planning to close Uni for health reasons at this time.

Today I have been in contact with Julie Pryde, the administrator of the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, and Dr. Robert Palinkas, director of the McKinley Health Center here on campus. I shared with them the number of students we have absent today, approximately 21 percent, mostly due to illness, and asked for their opinion on whether Uni should close due to health reasons.

Both Ms. Pryde and Dr. Palinkas were strong in their advice that Uni should not close at this time. They report that many schools have higher percentages of absence than we do, and they are not closing. They believe that there is no evidence that closing school helps prevent the spread of disease as the H1N1 flu is widespread in the community, not just in schools. Schools that have closed for a few days have found that the illness rate remains the same when they open again.

According to Ms. Pryde and Dr. Palinkas, the Centers for Disease Control and the Illinois Public Health Department are not recommending school closures except in one instance — that is, if the number of staff absent for illness becomes so great that the school cannot operate safely. Today Uni has one faculty member out due to illness.

In spite of our decision not to close at this time, we will leave the choice about school attendance in the hands of parents. In other words, we will excuse any absence for any student if a parent lets us know a student is staying home because of concerns about H1N1. Parents should be able to exercise that responsibility, especially if they feel their students are in a high-risk group.

Please call me (333-2870) or e-mail me (jwalking@illinois.edu) if you have questions or input about school closure. In the meantime, I will continue to monitor the situation, stay in contact with health officials, and update you if circumstances change.

Student absences increased from a daily average of four in August to about 10 in September. But this week the numbers went up dramatically: 21 on Monday, 36 Tuesday, 47 Wednesday, 91 today.

According to school registrar Ellen Lindsey, Uni's total student population for 2009-10 is 311. So 29.3 percent of all students — more than one-quarter — were absent by this afternoon.

The spike has led Assistant Director Sue Kovacs to cancel the subfreshman Halloween celebration planned for later this week. A party and haunted house had been scheduled for members of the Class of 2014 and their subbie buddies from 7 to 9 p.m. Friday at Uni.

Also canceled: subbie girls basketball practice this afternoon and the subbie girls basketball tournament scheduled for Friday and Saturday at St. Thomas in Philo.

As of now, Friday's Senior Night girls volleyball match with Judah Christian at Kenney Gym is still on, but a final decision will be made in the morning, according to Athletic Director Sally Walker. (Update: The match has been moved to Monday at 6 p.m.)

This week's flu bug has already topped the sick wave that hit Uni in late January 2007. Between Jan. 25 and 31 of that year, an average of 34 students were absent due to illness. At the outbreak's height, 52 students were absent (Jan. 30).