Help Keep Colonial Schools Safe

Press release from the Colonial School District:

Oct. 12, 2020

As school buildings reopen for in-person hybrid learning, it's important for families to understand when you should keep your child home and what parameters the District is using for when Colonial schools would close due to COVID-19.

Click here for a printable version of the above graphic.

When to stay home:

• If your child has been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19, your child must stay home for 14 days from the date of their last contact with a positive person.
• If your child has cold or flu-like symptoms (runny nose, congestion, sore throat, persistent cough, difficulty breathing, headache, chills, loss of taste/smell, muscle pain/aches, diarrhea or vomiting), your child must stay home to rest and recover. Follow the Return-To-School Criteria outlined below and call your healthcare provider if symptoms worsen.
• If your child has a fever of 100°F or higher, your child must stay home to rest and recover. Call your healthcare provider if symptoms worsen. They may go to school if they have been fever-free without medication for 24 hours, AND they were seen by their healthcare provider and diagnosed with something other than COVID-19. Otherwise, follow the Return-To-School Criteria outlined below.
• The student must participate in virtual instruction while home, or they will be considered absent. If they are too sick to participate, please click here to complete an absent note.

Return-To-School Criteria

If your child has a fever or other symptoms that could be from COVID-19 and does not get tested or is not cleared by their healthcare provider, it is assumed the child has COVID-19 and may not return to school until the following three criteria are met:

1. Your child has been fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication.
2. AND your child has improved symptoms.
3. AND at least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared or since the date of a positive COVID-19 test.

Notify your child's school if your child tests positive for COVID-19. Follow the Return-To-School Criteria for returning to in-person learning.

Quarantining after traveling

If a student travels to one of the states on Pennsylvania's list that would require quarantining, the student must quarantine for 14 days before returning to live in-person instruction. Please notify your child's school if your child needs to quarantine. The student must participate in virtual instruction while home, or they will be considered absent.

Click here for the Pennsylvania COVID-19 Information for Travelers page that includes the restricted states.

Click here for a printable version of the When would Colonial School District close? graphic.

When schools would close and for how long

When and how long Colonial School District schools would close depend on two main factors: the level of Community Transmission in Montgomery County and the Number of Cases of COVID-19 in Colonial schools within a 14-day period.

County Transmission Levels

• Low: The incident rate per 100,000 residents during the most recent seven days is less than 10, and the percent positivity during that same time is under 5%.
• Moderate: The incident rate per 100,000 residents during the most recent seven days is between 10 and 100, and the percent positivity during that same time is 5% to 10%.
• Substantial: The incident rate per 100,000 residents during the most recent seven days is greater than or equal to 100, and the percent positivity during that same time is greater than or equal to 10%.

Closing parameters

If the number of cases of COVID-19 in Colonial schools within a 14-day period is one student or staff member and the country transmission rate is low or moderate, the school does not need to close.

If the number of cases of COVID-19 in Colonial schools within a 14-day period is 2-4 students or staff in the same building or less than 5% of the total number of students in a school building or multiple school buildings with individual cases who are not household contacts, Colonial will close the affected schools for 3-7 days if the county transmission levels are low or moderate.

If there are more than five students or staff in the same building or greater than or equal to 5% of the total number of students and staff in a school building or multiple schools buildings with 2-4 cases who are not household contacts, Colonial will close the affected schools for 14 days if the level of community transmission is low or moderate.

If the level of transmission becomes substantial, all Colonial schools will close.

During the school closures, the District will perform extra cleaning and disinfecting, and Montgomery County public health staff will provide contact tracing and direct close contacts to quarantine. All students and staff will continue lessons through virtual instruction.

This press release was produced by the Colonial School District .The views expressed here are the author’s own.