NEW YORK — Coronavirus has claimed the lives of 50 Department of Education employees in New York City since the middle of March, officials announced Monday.

Of the 50 victims, 21 were teachers, 22 were paraprofessionals, two were administrators, one was a facilities staffer, one was a guidance counselor, one was a food service staff member and two were central office employees, according to the DOE.

The United Federation of Teachers union identified over a dozen members who have succumbed to COVID-19, including Sharon Kaufman, a special education teacher at PS 31 in the St. George section of Staten Island; Carol King-Grant, a sixth-grade special education teacher at Mott Hall Science and Technology Academy in the South Bronx; and Rosario Gonzalez, a paraprofessional at P79 in East Harlem.

“Our thoughts are with their families, loved ones, and school communities during this difficult time,” a DOE spokesperson said in a statement.

The deaths were recorded between March 16 and April 10. Each week going forward, the department will release updated numbers every Monday, reflecting the prior week.

While the deaths were reported to the DOE by family members as related to COVID-19, the data has not been verified with the city Department of Health.

“In the unfortunate reality of the public health crisis we are facing as a city, we need to ensure that our schools, students, and employees have the support they need. We are tracking COVID-19 fatalities in order to effectively deploy crisis support through guidance counselors and social workers remotely and when school buildings reopen,” the DOE spokesperson said in the statement. “This current data was collected through a variety of mechanisms as we move closer to one streamlined, comprehensive system.”

The DOE noted that the sources of transmission in each case are unknown, since community spread of COVID-19 has been prevalent since March.

The statewide death toll from coronavirus surpassed 10,000 on Monday, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo.