New COVID-19 School Guidance Released By State Of CT: 5 Things To Know

CONNECTICUT — The state departments of Education and Public Health released new guidance for the start of the school year that aims to keep students in the classroom amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The optional strategy for school districts is known as, “test, mask, go” and is a marked difference in strategy compared with previous school years.

Here are five things to know about the state strategy:

What is "test, mask, go"?

The fall and winter seasons will likely be filled with multiple respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, DPH Commissioner Dr. Manisha Juthani said at a news conference. Guidance for previous school years encouraged students to stay home if they had any respiratory virus symptoms.

This year, the guidance is to have students self-test for COVID-19 if they have any respiratory virus symptoms. Those who don’t have a fever, don't have a household member with a known COVID-19 infection, and test negative for COVID-19 can go to school, but should use a mask. Students should continue to test each day they have symptoms.

Those who have a fever should stay home, regardless of which infection they have, Juthani said.

“This isn't going to be any sort of, 'you must adhere to this policy,” she said. “It's a set of tools to be able to give a school to say you know what, we understand that children need to be in school and this is another way that we can help try to maximize the number of in-school days for any given child.”

How does this apply to COVID-19 isolation?

The guidance for isolation after a person tests positive for COVID-19 is the same, Juthani said. Students and teachers should follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, which are currently to remain home for five days and then wear a well-fitted mask for days six through 10.

The CDC offers a calculator to determine isolation days.

How does this affect mask guidance?

The state won’t impose any mask mandates in schools, Juthani said. School districts will determine their own policies.

DPH continues to encourage people to follow the CDC’s guidelines, which are based on hospital capacity and the number of patients in a hospital who have COVID-19.

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What is the current CDC COVID-19 guidance for Connecticut and how does it blend with Connecticut guidance?

New Haven County entered the high (orange) COVID-19 community level last week, which means the CDC recommends mask use while in an indoor public setting.

“At the New Haven County level, this would be for anybody in an indoor setting, we are recommending masking indoors in any indoor setting,” Juthani said.

One of the main reasons for the CDC guidelines is due to ongoing staffing shortages at hospitals and other healthcare settings, Juthani said.

“Another story or narrative that everybody has heard about are the healthcare heroes that started out his journey two and a half years ago,” she said. “Many of them have left the workforce, and we have healthcare institutions that are dealing with staffing and workforce challenges.”

DPH and the SDE released a document that outlines some strategies schools and childcare centers can contemplate as counties move to different CDC community levels.

Facilities in a high CDC community level should consider universal mask use policies for indoor spaces. They should also consider cohorting classrooms during meals, recess and other gathering times. Discussion should also center on whether high-intensity close-contact activities like indoor athletics should be temporarily suspended.

How did Connecticut teacher unions react?

Both the American Federation of Teachers and the Connecticut Education Association leaders were supportive of the guidance.

There are still concerns about indoor air quality and school staffing, but the concerns aren’t as magnified as they were in previous years, CEA President Kate Dias said.

“Do we have the same sort of panic about COVID? I don't think so,” she said. “I think we're concerned, but we're mindful.”

The entire school community needs to work together and adapt in order to keep a maximum amount of in-person learning, AFT President Jane Johcadel said. School boards, administrators, staff, parents and students are all looking for certainty

“Unfortunately, we can't give them that certainty yet,” she said. “But what we can give them is the new guidelines that have been developed so that the districts can collaborate and find ways to meet their situation, and their needs.”