August 16th, 2021
Summit Academy Schools Covid-19 Guidance 2021-2022
BACKGROUND
Summit Academy Schools will continue to review guidance issued by the CDC and Ohio Department of Health to determine best practice protocols for our students, staff, contractors, and visitors to our buildings. During the 2020-2021 school year guidance was issued and updated to stay up to date with the emergence of Covid-19, the lock down period, remote learning, and the limited return of students in the classroom. A state of emergency was declared, and masks were mandated by the Governor in the State of Ohio. All previous orders have since been rescinded or have expired.
Summit Academy Schools has prepared new guidance and recommendations for the 2021-2022 school year to address changes presented by vaccinations and the rise of Covid-19 variants to include the Delta variant. Mask and face shields, other personal protective equipment (PPE), social distancing, personal hygiene, temperature monitoring, quarantine, and other methods of protection will be addressed as comprehensively as possible.
There is a tremendous amount of information available regarding the Covid-19 vaccine and its initial effectiveness and ability to protect from variants of Covid-19. Summit Academy Schools is not making vaccinations mandatory and will in no way discriminate between vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. Ohio House Bill 244 signed by Governor DeWine, and effective October 13, 2021, specifically prohibits schools from mandating vaccines not yet approved by the Food and Drug Administration and prohibits discrimination against those not vaccinated by making them do different activities from those who are vaccinated. Summit Academy Schools will issue updated guidance as necessary to encompass any legislative changes.
RECOMMENDATIONS
While there has been progress to control the spread of Covid-19, the virus continues to remain a public health risk and information is being broadcast daily. As students, teachers and staff head back to the school buildings for the new school year, it is important that we do all that is possible to ensure that they remain in school to benefit from in person instruction, while still protecting those in the school setting, along with their family and community members.
MASKING
Guidance has been released from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) recommending that all teachers, staff, students, and visitors wear masks while indoors in a school setting regardless of vaccination status. It is considered a “best practice” that may reduce the potential for Covid-19 transmission and other respiratory infections. Exceptions should be made for those who cannot wear a mask because of a developmental delay or disability and for those who have severe asthma, other breathing, or other health related issues. All mask exemption requests will require a doctor’s recommendation/order and must be submitted to school staff prior to approval. Some of these students may be able to wear a face shield instead of a mask. The CDC and ODH also require that masks be worn on all public transportation, including school buses (whether contracted or provided directly by the school), regardless of vaccination status.
DISTANCING
Social distancing recommendations in a school setting have been reduced from six (6) feet to three (3) feet.
OTHER METHODS OF PREVENTION
To help[ keep children in the classroom, schools should layer as many of the established prevention strategies as possible. These include mask wearing, grouping students into smaller learning sections, handwashing and sanitizing, proper cough and sneeze etiquette improved building ventilation, screening/testing and staying home when ill. (A child should be kept home if they have a temperature of 100 degrees or above, loss of taste or smell, fatigue, cough, or difficulty breathing.) It is also recommended that temperatures still be taken before accessing the school building. This will help identify students who may be ill for reasons other than Covid-19. PPE including hand sanitizer and alcohol wipes are readily available throughout Summit Academy School buildings and should be utilized whenever deemed necessary.
REPORTING, ISOLATION & QUARANTINE
REPORTING
Schools are required to report new cases of Covid-19 to their local health departments and should identify close contacts as soon as possible to help minimize the transmission to others. Grant Mueller, Director of Health & Safety Services, is the Covid-19 Coordinator for all Summit Academy Schools and should be immediately notified of a confirmed Covid-19 case and will in turn notify the relevant health department. All county health departments were notified last school year and given the Covid-19 Coordinators information for reporting purposes. Contact tracing will not be conducted by Summit Academy, but the school may be contacted by the local county health department for additional information. Only cases directly involving students and staff need to be reported. Third party cases, (relative or acquaintance) that were not in the building for class or extracurricular activities, do not need to be reported.
ISOLATION
Anyone confirmed as having been infected with Covid-19 must isolate until they meet all the following criteria:
- At least ten (10) days have passed since the onset of symptoms or 10 days since the test date if they have no symptoms.
- Any Covid-19 related symptoms have improved.
- They have been fever free for at least 24 hours without taking fever reducing medication such as Tylenol or Motrin.
QUARANTINE
A close contact is defined as “someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative time of 15 minutes or more during a 24-hour period, starting from 2 days before illness onset, or for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test specimen collection”. These contacts should quarantine in a manner consistent with one of the following options approved by the Ohio Department of Health:
- Initiate a home quarantine for 10 days following the exposure. This quarantine period provides the lowest risk for transmission. It is the preferred course of action for people living in, working at, or routinely visiting congregate living facilities, high density workplaces, or other settings where contact with people at increased risk for severe illness from Covid-19 Is possible.
- A reduced quarantine duration of 7 days from the date of exposure when the person obtains a negative viral test on day 5 or later after the last exposure. A PCR test is preferred, but a negative rapid antigen test is also approved for ending the quarantine after 7 days.
- Quarantine may be waived if a student or employee is two weeks past completion of the vaccine series (two shots for Pfizer and Moderna: one shot for Johnson and Johnson) and without Covid-19 symptoms.
- Per ODH guidance, unvaccinated students who were exposed to the virus do not need to quarantine if both parties were wearing a mask, were at least three (3) feet apart, and were in a classroom setting. All three (3) conditions must be met.
In all cases, the student (and their parents and siblings) should monitor for symptoms for 14 days as many students become symptomatic later in the incubation period. The school should maintain a quarantine policy and be consistent in its response to Covid-19 cases.
Since the implementation of the layered prevention strategies mentioned earlier has proven to be effective in the K-12 school environment as documented during studies and pilot evaluations, Ohio modified its standard quarantine procedures. These changes are intended to allow unvaccinated students who have been exposed to Covid-19 in a school setting (classroom, bus, etc.) to continue to attend school and participate in sports and extracurricular activities if:
- The infected person and the contact were both wearing masks consistently and correctly.
- All the prevention strategies were in place.
- They remain symptom free.
Per current CDC guidelines, fully vaccinated students do not have to quarantine. Unvaccinated students who are under quarantine should not attend in person school or participate in organized sports or extracurricular activities if their Covid-19 exposure occurred somewhere other than the school setting. Anyone, whether vaccinated or unvaccinated, who is a close contact of a case should self-monitor for symptoms for 14 days following the exposure.
These recommendations and guidelines provided by Summit Academy Schools are subject to change based on updated CDC or ODH recommendations and guidance and/or changes in the level of community transmission.
Links: ODH Guidelines for Quarantine Flow Chart
ODH Guidelines for Quarantine After Exposure in K-12 Classroom Settings
Respectfully Submitted,
Grant A. Mueller, MSA\CPP
Summit Academy Schools
Director of Health & Safety
COVID-19 Coordinator
March 10, 2020
Dear Parents/Guardians:
As of yesterday afternoon, city and county health officials confirmed three cases of COVID-19 in Cuyahoga County, all of whom have been quarantined. We would like to remind families that Summit Academy Schools are working very closely with local health departments and are receiving additional guidance and updates from the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as it relates to COVID-19.
All Summit Academy School locations are taking precautions to promote healthy school environments. Our schools are monitoring student and staff absences daily to determine if it is necessary to close school to help prevent the spread of illnesses. Desks, tables and common surfaces in our schools are disinfected regularly and frequent handwashing is being encouraged.
Practicing good hygiene can help limit the spread of viruses in our schools. The current recommended precautions to avoid exposure to the virus are the same precautions you would take to avoid the flu:
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
For continued updates, please check our website www.summitacademies.org.
To assist you, we have provided links to resources below that are continually updated by health experts for your reference.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/faq.html
https://odh.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odh/know-our-programs/Novel-Coronavirus
https://coronavirus.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/covid-19/
The health and safety of our students and staff members is our priority. We assure you that we will continue to collaborate with local health officials and provide updates as they become available.
Respectfully,
Eric Marthaler Grant A. Mueller, MSA/CPP
Superintendent Health/Safety & Security Liaison