Protests against mandated COVID-19 vaccines pop up across US

Texas reported 15,558 new COVID-19 cases Wednesday, the highest one-day count since Feb. 3, according to state health records.

The state has seen a major jump in cases in the last month, brought on by the delta variant, according to officials.

The seven-day average of new daily cases has increased from about 1,500 on July 2 to nearly 10,000 on Aug. 3, according to state health data.

As of Wednesday, 62.58% of Texas residents 12 and older have received at least one shot, according to the state health department.

Hundreds of student and staff members from the Marion School District in Arkansas are now quarantined in only the second week of the school year, officials announced.

The state has a ban on school districts imposing a mask mandate.

On Tuesday, the district said 253 students would begin their two-week quarantine due to 15 cases that were reported in the schools. This came after 168 students were already quarantined last week.

"If all students and teachers had been wearing a mask appropriately- then today's 15 positive cases would be isolated- but there would be no resulting quarantines for anyone else," the district said in a statement.

Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson told reporters Tuesday he regretted signing the bill that banned masks in schools and urged the state legislature to amend the law to give schools the option.

A Florida school district that defied Gov. Ron DeSantis' ban on school mask mandates said Tuesday that two of its employees died from the virus last weekend.

Carlee Simon, the superintendent for the Alachua County Schools, said in a statement that the district "is experiencing this spike first-hand."

"Over the weekend two of our employees passed away from COVID," she said in a statement. "We've had 18 new cases in the last three days alone. More than 80 employees are now in quarantine, and that number is rising fast."

The school district, which includes which includes Gainesville, voted Tuesday night to issue a mask mandate for students and staff for the next two weeks. The mandate will be reevaluated on Aug. 17, Simon said.

The Hawaii State Department of Education announced that all middle and high school athletes, athletic staff and volunteers will need to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 24 in order to participate in activities.

The rule affects students who are eligible for the vaccines, meaning they must be over 12.

"This decision was not made lightly because we know the important role athletics play in a well-rounded education, but we cannot jeopardize the health and safety of our students and communities," interim Superintendent Keith Hayashi said in a statement.

The start of the athletic season was delayed to Sept. 24 due to the state's rising positivity rate, according to the department.

This is the first state to require vaccinations for its student athletes.

-ABC News' Bonnie McLean