Reopening plans for all Warren County schools released
Aug. 3—The Warren County Educational Service Center has released its Common Return to Learn Guidance for the county's eight school districts and the Warren County Career Center.
The guidance outlines the school's plans to ensure the safe return to the classrooms in the coming weeks. Those key principles include: — Each school district will implement safety protocols in alignment with the guidance of the Warren County Health District. — Each school district will be transparent with all stakeholders that some level of risk will always be present when children and school district employees occupy school district facilities. — School districts recognize the need for consistency in areas of operations while recognizing that individual differences in classroom sizes, school facilities, and building operations may lead to some inconsistencies. — School districts are planning to maintain their previously approved school calendars with some possible front-loading of employee professional development.
Officials said the plan is subject to change as new information becomes available or as the situation changes in Warren County.
In addition, these principles will be common to all Warren County public school districts:
Daily Self-Monitoring: Students should monitor their own temperatures and their health on a daily basis before coming to school.
Student Illnesses: Any student with a fever over 100 F should stay home; Any student that has the following symptoms of COVID-19 should stay home from school and should see their primary care provider to be assessed for COVID-19: Two of the following symptoms: fever (measured or subjective), chills, rigors, myalgia, headache, sore throat, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, congestion or runny nose or any of the following symptoms: cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, new olfactory disorder, new taste disorder.
Returning to School After Illness:
If a student is diagnosed as having COVID-19, they must meet the following criteria to return to school: 24 hours with no fever (without using fever reducing medication); and other symptoms improved; and 10 days since symptoms first appeared.
Students that only have a fever and no other symptoms and have not had any contact with an individual that has COVID-19 may return to school after they are fever free for 24 hours without using any fever reducing medications.
Any other illnesses should be handled in the routine manner according to district policies
Communications when a student/staff member has been diagnosed with a COVID 19 positive case
School districts will implement processes to comply with orders from the Ohio Department of Health regarding communications about COVID 19.
Parents must report to the school any positive exposures or positive tests for COVID 19;
All parents or legal guardians of students, as well as school staff, must notify the school of a confirmed diagnosis within 24 hours.
Each school district will designate an employee to communicate with the local health department.
The school district will notify parents/legal guardians within 24 hours of becoming aware of a positive case of a student or school employee and the school district will also notify the local health department within 24 hours.
School districts will facilitate communications between the Warren County Health District and parents, community members, and school employees. School districts do not order quarantines or isolations but do work with Health Department officials in the area of contact tracing and good communications.
Food Service
All districts will offer food service. Students may have required seating during breakfast and lunch period to facilitate contact tracing if it is so needed. School districts will tailor specific food service operations to promote safety for all.
Classroom Occupancy
Districts will implement safety protocols to the largest extent possible but any student who attends school will incur some level of risk. Districts will decrease the likelihood of infection with hygiene, cleaning, and safety procedures, but being in a public place has a certain level of risk that cannot be eliminated.
Classroom occupancy will be determined based on each individual circumstance with the maximum amount of safety considerations possible.
The Ohio Department of Health and CDC strongly recommends facial coverings/masks; schools will also recommend facial coverings/masks, but will not require them, unless mandated by ODH.
Seating charts will be used to facilitate contact tracing if it is needed.
Visitors/Volunteers/Parties:
Each district will make decisions about school visitors that are unique to that school facility and event that address community needs and promote safety for all. Visitors may be required to adhere to safety protocols such as taking temperatures and completing a health questionnaire.
Transportation
Seating charts will be used to assist with contact tracing if that is needed. The CDC requires facial coverings/masks on all public transportation. In compliance with this order, all school districts will require that school employees and students obey this order from the CDC.
Recess
School districts will make every effort to maintain consistency with other safety procedures. Students must sanitize their hands after recess.
