Health Protocols
This document is intended to be used for the start of the 2020-2021 school year as part of the Return to Learning in AISD. Changes to the public health situation may necessitate changes to this document and these protocols.
| PREVENTING SPREAD |
These four sets of practices minimize the likelihood of viral spread.
- Provide Notice: Requirements for parental and public notices
- Prevent: Required practices to prevent the virus from entering the school
- Respond: Required practices to respond to a lab-confirmed case in the school
- Mitigate: Recommended and required practices to reduce likely spread inside the school
PROVIDING NOTICE
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Requirements for parental and public notices
AISD will post for parents and the public at least one week prior to the start of on-campus activities and instruction a summary of the plan that will be followed to mitigate COVID-19 spread in their schools. This will be posted on the homepage of the website as well as campus websites.
The five campus nurses will make up the group who respond to COVID-19 concerns. Kris Wildeveld will be the coordinator of the group. Emails for campus nurses and campus contact numbers will be published.
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PREVENTION
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Screening Questions for COVID-19 before campus access
1.) AISD will require teachers and staff to pass through temperature scanners and self-screen for symptoms before coming onto campus each day. A list of symptoms will be reviewed each day by each individual as a self screening tool. The temperature scanners will be located at the entrances of each campus.
Teachers and staff must report to the nurse and principal if they have symptoms or are lab confirmed with COVID-19. They must remain off campus until they meet the re-entry criteria.
They must report to the nurse and principal if they have had close contact with an individual who is lab confirmed and must remain off campus until the 14-day incubation period has passed.
2.) Parents must ensure they do not send a child to school with symptoms or if lab confirmed. Parents will screen children prior to their arrival at school utilizing a self screening tool which lists symptoms. Students will be required to pass through a temperature scanner at the entrance of each campus building.
They should opt to receive remote instruction until re-entry conditions are met. Parents may opt to have a student who has had close contact with a lab confirmed individual receive remote instruction.
3.) Visitors are not allowed on campuses except for drop off and pick up.
4.) Individuals who are lab confirmed or experience the symptoms must stay home throughout the infection period.
In the case of an individual who was diagnosed with COVID-19, the individual may return to school when ALL THREE of the criteria are met:
5.) If an individual has symptoms but has not been evaluated by a medical professional or tested, he is assumed to have COVID-19 and may not return to the campus until the individual has completed the same set of criteria.
6.) If the individual has symptoms and wants to return before the completion of the stay at home period, the individual must either obtain a medical professional’s note clearing the individual for return based on an alternative diagnosis or obtain an acute infection test at an approved testing location that comes back negative for COVID-19.
7.) Schools must immediately separate any student who shows symptoms at school until the parent can pick up the student. 8.) Schools must clean the areas used by the individual who shows symptoms while at school (teacher, staff, student) as soon as possible.
9.) Students who report feeling feverish should be given a temperature check to determine if they are symptomatic for COVID-19.
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RESPONSE
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1.) If an individual who has been in school is lab confirmed, the school must notify its local health department in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws and regulation, including confidentiality requirements of the ADA and FERPA.
2.) Schools must close off areas that are heavily used by the individual with the confirmed case until the non porous surfaces in those areas can be disinfected, unless more than 3 days have passed since that person was on campus.
3.) Consistent with school notification requirements for other communicable diseases and consistent with legal confidentiality requirements, schools must notify all teachers, staff, and families of all students in a school if a lab confirmed case is identified among students, teachers, or staff who participate in any campus activities.
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MITIGATION
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1.) Have hand sanitizer at each classroom entrance.
2.) Students, teachers, staff must sanitize and/or wash hands frequently.
3.) Have students in elementary engage in 20 seconds of hand-washing twice each day.
4.) Have students wash hands after using the restroom and before eating.
5.) All must cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or covered in their elbows.
6.) Frequent cleaning practices by janitorial staff will be instituted. Provide opportunity for children to clean their own spaces before and after they are used.
7.) Additional cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces touched in common throughout the day will occur. This includes door handles, tables/desks, shared supplies such as art supplies, high touch devices such as laptops or tablets.
8.) Air flow will be improved whenever possible.
9.) On the first day of school, instruction will be provided on hygiene practices and other mitigation practices adopted in the system.
10.) Portable student trifold desk dividers for PK-3 will be utilized.
11.) Trifold desk dividers will be utilized at MS/HS.
12.) Plexiglas will be utilized for reception areas, MS/HS teacher desks, and student nutrition lines.
13.) Disinfectant spray and wipes will be available in classrooms and labs.
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| HEALTH AND HYGIENE PRACTICES: MASKS |
1.) Masks include non-medical grade face masks, cloth face coverings, or full-face shields to protect eyes, nose, and mouth.
2.) When it is impractical for students to wear masks or face shields during athletic or extracurricular activities, students and staff will wear masks when entering and exiting facilities and practice areas. Six feet of distance must be maintained while exercising.
| STUDENT TEACHER GATHERINGS |
1.) Place desks six feet apart when possible.
| USE OF NON-CLASSROOM SPACES |
1.) It is preferable for students to gather outside when appropriate because of reduced risk of spread outdoors.
2.) Entry, exit, and transition procedures will reduce large groups gathering in close proximity. Stagger start and end times.
3.) Assign students to entries to ensure even distribution of students entering/exiting at each door. Parents must remain outside during drop-off and pick-up.
4.) Eliminate assemblies as much as possible.
6.) Whenever possible seat students six feet apart in the cafeteria. Utilize trifold dividers in elementary cafeterias. Utilize disposable food service items.
| TRANSPORTATION |
1.) Hand sanitizer must be used before boarding the bus.
2.) Open bus windows if possible.
3.) Carpool, drop students off, or walk if possible.
4.) Clean buses after each trip focusing on high touch surfaces.
| VISITS TO SCHOOLS |
1. No visitors are allowed into the school. This includes volunteers, parents, PTA, Watch Dogs.
2. No lunch visitors are allowed.
| ATTENDANCE & ENROLLMENT |
1.) Students must attend 90% of the days a course is offered to be awarded credit for the course and/or to be promoted to the next grade. TEC 25.092.
2.) Attendance may be earned through virtual instruction.
3.) AISD will offer virtual and in person learning. Any parent may request their student be offered virtual instruction. A student may switch from virtual to on-campus or on-campus to virtual at nine week periods. A switch at another time would require extenuating circumstances.
4.) AISD will have daily on campus classes for those who request this.
5.) AISD will publish a notice of public education enrollment and attendance rights and responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic using the TEA document.
| STAFFING |
1.) Hold virtual meetings when possible
| SYMPTOMS |
- Feeling feverish of a temp greater than or equal to 100.0 degrees Fahrenheit
- Loss of taste or smell
- Cough
- Difficulty breathing
- Shortness of breath
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Chills
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Shaking or exaggerated shivering
- Significant muscle pain or ache
- Diarrhea
- Nausea or vomiting
| CLOSE CONTACT |
This document refers to “close contact” with an individual who is lab-confirmed to have COVID-19. The definition of close contact is evolving with our understanding of COVID-19.
Close contact is defined as:
1.) Being directly exposed to infectious secretions (e.g., being coughed on); or
2.) Being within 6 feet for a cumulative duration of 15 minutes;
however, additional factors like case/contact masking (i.e., both the infectious individual and the potential close contact have been consistently and properly masked), ventilation, presence of dividers, and case symptomatology may affect this determination.
Either #1 or #2. defines close contact if it occurred during the infectious period of the case, defined as two days prior to symptom onset to 10 days after symptom onset. In the case of asymptomatic individuals who are lab-confirmed with COVID-19, the infectious period is defined as two days prior to the confirming lab test and continuing for 10 days following the confirming lab test.