Updated COVID-19 Information                  

Updated District Guidelines  

On March 2, 2022 our district shifted to “mask optional” status.  In the two weeks that have followed, NYSDOH, county health departments and NYSED have provided additional guidance updates and clarification on allowable shifts in practice in the overall management of COVID-19 in schools.  

Beginning on Monday, March 21, Delaware Academy will implement the following procedures, consistent with these updates, given that Delaware County remains an area of Low or Medium Risk:  

CONTINUE:

• Use of masks in schools, including on school buses and in all extra-curricular and athletic activities will continue to be optional for all students and staff.
• Use of masks will be required upon return from isolation during days 6 through 10 after infection.  
• Masking, regardless of vaccination status, is strongly recommended for 10 days following a known exposure to an individual infected with COVID-19.
• Masks will be required for any visitors to DASH as per Bassett School Based Health.
• All other mitigation protocols remain intact including protocols for cleaning, social distancing, contact tracing, and weekly testing for unvaccinated staff.  This service is also available to students with parent/guardian consent.  

NEW:

• DA will notify affected families, via email or phone call, of exposure to an individual who reports a new COVID-19 infection.  Please note that resumed mask use during the ten-day period following this exposure is strongly recommended by NYSDOH.  
• We are shifting away from the daily Test-to-Stay program consistent with this guidance.  When an individual is identified for potential quarantine due to a known exposure, families will be asked to test their child on the first day of known exposure and again on the fifth day.  The individual may attend school during this time as long as they remain asymptomatic.  
• Test kits will be provided to families, free of charge and at your request to facilitate home testing.  Simply contact the main office in each building to make arrangements.   

This is subject to change should the district receive updated directives from the NYS Department of Health, or if Delaware County becomes designated as an area of High Risk.  Please contact the District Office, or your building principal with any clarifying questions.  Thank you for your continued partnership!

  Back-to-School Plan 2021-2022  

The following addendum will be added to our 2020-21 School Reopening plan.
Addendum:   8/23/2021

Introduction

Delaware Academy will be open for full-time in person learning starting September 7, 2021.  There will not be a hybrid option this year.  Remote learning options will only be available to students with documented medical conditions that prevent them from safely participating in person even with additional environmental accommodations.   

When the 2021-2022 school year begins, school will look much like it did when the last school year ended in June of 2021, when DA achieved full in-person learning. Face coverings will still be required and 3-foot social distancing will be maintained when possible. It remains our priority to keep students and staff safe while physically present in school.

We ask for your support and cooperation in following the guidelines detailed in the school opening plan. Together, we are confident we can make the 2021-22 school year a success.

Delaware Academy has designated Carey Shultz, Business Administrator to serve as COVID-19 Safety Coordinator, who along with Kelly Zimmerman, Superintendent are responsible for the following:

• Be the main contacts upon the identification of positive COVID-19 cases and be responsible for subsequent communication
• Ensure continuous compliance with all aspects of the Delaware Academy pandemic response plan
• Be the county, state, and federal liaison for all matters related to COVID-19

1.  Use of Masks

When teachers, staff, and students consistently and correctly wear face coverings, they protect others as well as themselves. Consistent and correct face covering use is especially important indoors and in settings when physical distancing cannot be maintained.

Acceptable face coverings for COVID-19 include, but are not limited to, cloth or disposable face coverings that cover both the mouth and nose (i.e. commercially made, homemade, sewn, & disposable masks that cover mouth and nose).

All students, staff, parents/guardians and visitors must wear face coverings in instructional buildings regardless of vaccination status.  Mask breaks will be provided in classrooms at teacher discretion.  Masks can be removed indoors when seated and socially distanced at 3-feet when:

• DA experiences two (2) weeks of zero positive cases of students and staff
• Delaware County’s seven-day rolling average is <2%

Students and staff who are unable to tolerate a face covering due to a medical condition will require documentation from a physician. DA administration will make decisions regarding students and staff who cannot tolerate face coverings due to a mental health concern or a developmental disability on a case-by-case basis.

Delaware Academy will continue to obtain and maintain an adequate quantity of personal protective equipment (PPE) used for school safety purposes.

2.  Social Distancing

While indoors, maintain at least three feet of physical distance between students within classrooms, cafeteria, physical education, and music.  If students are engaged in singing or playing a wind instrument, at least six feet of distance between students is recommended. In physical education, ensure any contact due to activities is quick and not for extended periods of time.

3.  Contact Tracing and Quarantine

School districts must continue to report positive cases of COVID-19 to DOH. All individuals who test positive for COVID-19 must remain in isolation for 10 days from date of symptom onset or test date if asymptomatic. Consistent with CDC guidance, students in the UPK-12 indoor classroom who are within at least three feet of an infected student with masking are excluded from the definition of close contact and not required to quarantine. DOH concurs with CDC guidance which recommends that fully vaccinated persons who have come into close contact with someone with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 should be tested 3-5 days after exposure. Close contacts of positive cases of COVID-19 which do not fall in the exception detailed below must quarantine for 10 days and monitor symptoms through the 14th day. Below is the CDC exemption for K-12 students in indoor classroom setting:

Exception: In the K–12 indoor classroom setting, the close contact definition excludes students who were within three to six feet of an infected student (laboratory-confirmed or a clinically compatible illness) if both students correctly and consistently wore well-fitting masks the entire time. This exception does not apply to teachers, staff, or other adults in the indoor classroom setting.

It is recommended that schools should continue to assist the DOH with contact tracing. Any students who begin to exhibit symptoms of COVID-19 should remain home and seek testing.

4.  School Buses and School Vehicles

All students and staff must wear masks while inside a bus, regardless of vaccination status.  Greater than one student per seat is permitted if distancing cannot be achieved.

Ventilation (windows open) can also help reduce risk of transmission.

5.  Management of Ill Persons

Any student or staff member with a fever greater than 100°F and/or symptoms of possible COVID-19 infection should not be present in school.

Students and staff with symptoms of illness must be sent to the health office. Ill students and staff will be assessed by the school nurse, medical director, or DASH staff. If a school nurse or medical director is not available, ill students and staff will be sent home for follow up with a healthcare provider. The school nurse or medical director will assess individuals for chronic conditions such as asthma, allergies or chronic gastrointestinal conditions that may present the same symptoms as COVID-19, but are neither contagious nor pose a public health threat.

Students with a temperature or signs of illness will be sent directly to a dedicated isolation area for an evaluation, and possible Covid test. Staff will wear protective equipment when assessing the student. Staff who are ill with COVID 19 symptoms at work should notify their supervisor, leave the building and follow up with their medical provider.

Whenever a student or staff member shows symptoms of COVID-19 that imposes a significant risk of infection of others in the school, the individual shall be excluded from the school and sent home in a safe and proper conveyance. The Covid Coordinator or Superintendent will immediately notify the local public health department when a positive COVID case is reported.

School staff must immediately report any illness of students or staff to the school nurse or other designated school staff.

DA will provide for the cleaning and disinfection of exposed areas in the event an individual is confirmed to have COVID-19.

6.  Return to School after COVID-19 Illness

If a person with COVID-19 symptoms is not diagnosed as COVID-19 positive by a healthcare provider (physician, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant) they can return to school in coordination with Delaware County Public Health department:

• Once there is no fever, without the use of fever reducing medicines, and they have felt well for 24 hours

AND are able to meet at least one of the following criteria:

• They have been diagnosed with another condition and have a healthcare provider written note stating they are clear to return to school
• They have a negative COVID 19 test
• They have self-quarantined for 10 days

DELAWARE ACADEMY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR CDC, STATE, AND LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT GUIDANCE. THIS PLAN IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC PROGRESSES.

DA TEST-TO-STAY PROGRAM

Addendum:  1/10/2022, Updated: 1/12/2022

Introduction

On 12/23/21, the NYS Department of Health issued a field memo titled, Test to Stay Update: Revised Updated Testing and Quarantine Supplemental Information to the Interim NYSDOH Guidance for Classroom Instruction in P-12 Schools During the 2021-2022 Academic Year.  The memo can be accessed HERE.

This plan has been updated to also comply with NYSDOH 1/4/22 field memo titled, Interim Updated Isolation & Quarantine Guidance (accessed HERE).

Based on recent studies released by the Center for Disease Control (CDC), the NYSDOH supports Test to Stay as a strategy that allows asymptomatic unvaccinated school-based close contacts (i.e. students, teachers, other school staff) to avoid school exclusion (but not other restrictions of quarantine) by testing negative through serial testing using rapid NAAT or antigen tests during a seven-day period following exposure.  The intent is to reduce the number of students and staff who are excluded from school due to quarantine orders who are otherwise healthy (asymptomatic and negative).

Test to Stay (TTS) sets forth responsibilities for local health departments and school districts.  This Addendum serves to outline those responsibilities and document Delaware Academy’s plan for implementation.

Responsibilities of Delaware County Public Health

• Review updated Test to Stay plans for Delaware Academy and authorize implementation of Test to Stay programs
• Ensure that schools remain current on their reporting of all COVID-19 test results to the NYS COVID-19 Report Card
• Assess available local resources and encourage schools to assess resources that can be used to support Test to Stay programs
• Ensure the opportunity to participate is available to all districts in the county.  School districts retain the authority to decide whether or not to participate

Delaware Academy Test to Stay Plan:

1.  If there is a COVID-19 positive case the District will conduct contact tracing consistent with Delaware County Public Health guidelines and parameters and as outlined in the Delaware Academy Reopening Plan for 2021-2022.

2.  Any individual (student, faculty/staff member) who is identified by the District as a close contact as a result of contact tracing will be considered for Test to Stay based on the following parameters:

a) The exposure may have occurred in the home, community, or school setting.

b) The exposed person is unvaccinated.

c) The exposed person is asymptomatic; if the exposed person who is allowed to

remain in school through TTS develops symptoms, they must be immediately

excluded from school per current school guidance.  In that instance, the District

will engage in contact tracing following current protocols.

d) The exposed person will be tested a minimum of three times during the five

day period following exposure, unless recognition of the exposure is delayed or

weekends or school breaks intervene.

e) The five-day period is measured in calendar days where the last date of

exposure is considered Day Zero (0).

f) The tests will be conducted, and results received, before the school day begins

in the Nurse’s office at the Elementary and Middle/High Schools.  Any positive

individuals will be isolated per existing procedures.  Tests conducted at home

will not be accepted as part of Test to Stay.

3.  The exposed person who is allowed to remain in school through Test to Stay must be otherwise quarantined outside of the instructional school day (after school/evenings; no community activities, extracurricular or athletic participation).

4.  Any student who participates in Test to Stay must have a signed consent for testing form from a parent or guardian.

5.  Individuals participating in Test to Stay are allowed to continue to ride the school bus following all existing guidance, including required mask wearing.

6.  The Test to Stay program will be maintained as long as the District is able to provide test kits in an equitable fashion, free of charge to students and staff.  The District retains the authority to discontinue the program at any time.

Delaware Academy COVID-19 Contact Information:

Delaware Academy has designated Carey Shultz, Business Administrator to serve as COVID-19 Safety Coordinator, who along with Kelly Zimmerman, Superintendent are responsible for the following:

• Be the main contacts upon the identification of positive COVID-19 cases and be responsible for subsequent communication
• Ensure continuous compliance with all aspects of the Delaware Academy pandemic response plan
• Be the county, state, and federal liaison for all matters related to COVID-19

They can be contacted at [email protected], [email protected], or by calling (607) 746-1300.

DELAWARE ACADEMY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR CDC, STATE, AND LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT GUIDANCE. THIS PLAN IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC PROGRESSES.

DELAWARE ACADEMY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR CDC, STATE, AND LOCAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT GUIDANCE. THIS PLAN IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE AS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC PROGRESSES.

Delaware Academy Back-to-School Slide Deck