Council Rock Releases Draft Of School Safety Plan

NEWTOWN, PA — The Council Rock School District has released a draft of its Health and Safety Plan, required for the reopening of in-person instruction this fall.

The plan, which was discussed during a virtual forum last week, is expected to be considered by the board for approval on July 23.

"The draft plan relies heavily on guidance from the Bucks County Health Department, as well as survey results from both our parents and our staff members," the district said.

The district is currently planning to resume in-person instruction, with the option for parents and families to select online-only school.

Some highlights of the plan include:

• All staff and students are required to wear a face covering when in school per the order of the PA Health Department. Individuals with medical conditions or disabilities that prevent them from safely wearing a face covering are exempt.
• Classrooms will be organized with students at least three feet apart and tables that have seats three feet apart. No students will be seated face-to-face.
• All communal spaces like hallways will have a one-way flow of traffic.
• Frequent handwashing or use of hand sanitizer will be encouraged throughout the school day.
• High-touch surfaces and student desks will be cleaned throughout the day. Thorough disinfecting of high touch surfaces and desks will occur nightly
• On school buses, students will be seated two to a seat with face coverings required. Siblings will sit together when possible.
• Assigned seating will be implemented for students eating in cafeterias and other congregate settings to help control for contact tracing.
• If a student or staff member becomes ill with symptoms of COVID-19, the school nurse will ask him/her to put on a face covering and will send him/her to the quarantine area. Parents will be contacted and asked to pick up their child. Siblings of these children who are in the district will be screened for symptoms by the school nurse.
• School nurses will be trained in a district protocol to ensure consistent treatment of COVID-19 symptoms across the district. Students who test positive for COVID-19 will not be permitted to return to school without medical clearance.

You can see the full draft of the plan here.

The county health department has prepared a list of frequently asked questions about the reopening of schools. Those can be found here.