Millburn Schools Issue Protocol For Coronavirus

MILLBURN, NJ — After the Centers for Disease Control warned on Tuesday that American schools, businesses, and communities should prepare for the novel coronavirus, the Millburn school district sent out an email late Wednesday about how it is preparing.

The virus had killed more than 2,800 people worldwide as of Thursday morning, CNN reported, and affected people in 44 countries, including 53 confirmed cases in the United States. Most of those afflicted have been a single province in China.

Concern increased this week after a person in California contracted the disease without traveling, and reportedly without having contact with an infected person.

The email sent out from the Millburn, NJ school district on Wednesday stated:

<blockquote>We are monitoring the alerts from the CDC about the possibility of the spread of the Coronavirus within the United States. We continue to follow the current guidance posted by the New Jersey Department of Education and the New Jersey Department of Health. Please note, at this time we have no concerns about this virus in our schools.

As recommended by the CDC, we are in the process of making preparations for the possibility that a spread of the virus in the U.S. may impact school attendance, and/or require us to close schools. We are working with our Board, administrators and technology department to plan for the continuation of instruction for our students should such a situation occur.

The Department of Health and the Millburn School District recommend that all families with a child who (within the past two weeks) has traveled to an area of the world highly impacted by the Coronavirus, to please contact their child’s principal and/or school nurse prior to sending their child back to school. The Millburn district and school nurses will work with these families to determine the appropriate timeline for re-entry to school.

Please only notify the school district about your own child/children who have recently traveled to a country impacted by the coronavirus. We cannot discuss the health concerns of other students due to confidentiality restrictions.

We are continuing to maintain enhanced daily cleaning and sanitizing at all of our schools, using the Curis disinfecting sanitizer machines around each building every day. All schools have also been provided with hand sanitizer dispensers that contain an alcohol-free foaming product that is 99% effective against common disease-causing organisms. While handwashing with soap and water is always preferred to the use of sanitizers, students should be reminded to use the school-provided sanitizers when hand washing is not available.

We ask for your help in phasing out the use of alcohol-based wipes and sanitizers in our schools. They are considered ineffective against viruses, do not comply with allergy policies, and have adverse effects when ingested.

Again, we would like to remind you of the recommended precautions for preventing the flu and other viruses:

• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue or into your sleeve, not your hands.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth
• Wash hands often, with soap and water, for at least 20 seconds, especially after coughing or sneezing.
• Keep your children home when they are sick.
• Children should not return to school unless they have been fever-free without medication for 24 hours.
• Avoid people who are sick
• Get a flu shot – it’s not too late to be protected
• Clean and disinfect frequently-touched surfaces and objects.

Thank you for your cooperation in keeping our students and staff safe and healthy.</blockquote>

On Wednesday afternoon, the Summit schools superintendent also issued a coronavirus letter, but less detailed than above.