Dear Families,
The Ohio Department of Health released new quarantine guidelines this week. Those guidelines allow students or staff who have had contact at school with a positive person to quarantine at school if they continue to wear a mask for 14 days. Students or staff who have exposure from outside school will need to continue to quarantine at home.
Our Washington Local Schools positive case data continues to improve. Only a very small percentage of the students who have been quarantined from school exposure have tested positive for COVID. Thousands of days of lost instruction have impacted students academically and socially. Many students have been quarantined multiple times. Beginning Wednesday, November 3, although Washington Local Schools will still highly encourage masks, students and staff will have the option to wear a mask as outlined in the Ohio Department of Health guidance. Masks will continue to be required on all district transportation until at least January 18, 2022 by Federal mandate.
Direct contacts of any student or staff member exposed to a positive COVID case at school, regardless of vaccination or masking status, may remain in the classroom if they do the following:
1) Wear a mask for 14 days after their last date of exposure.
2) Self-monitor for symptoms of COVID-19.
3) Isolate and get tested if they start to experience symptoms associated with COVID-19 (regardless of level of severity).
4) Consistent with guidance for others quarantining in lower-risk environments, students and staff may discontinue these quarantine procedures after seven days — if they don’t develop symptoms and test negative between days 5-7. COVID tests must be proctored (no self-administered, over the counter tests without medical supervision). Free COVID tests are available at your school buildings upon request.
All students or staff who are exposed to a positive case outside of school will need to quarantine at home. Guidance for athletes will be posted on the district website on Monday, November 1.
As long as
positive district COVID cases remain under 45 positive cases across the district, Washington Local Schools will continue to encourage, but will not require universal masking. If there is an outbreak at an individual building or positive cases exceed 45, Washington Local Schools may reinstate universal masking until cases drop below this target. As a reminder, weekly cases and quarantines are posted on our website.
Masks will continue to be required in all Washington Local Schools buildings until Wednesday, November 3.
We will continue to closely monitor data and make any necessary adjustments to protocols in order to keep our students, staff and community safe.
Every Student Matters; Every Moment Counts!
Kadee Anstadt, Ed.D.
Superintendent/CEO
Washington Local Schools
3505 W. Lincolnshire Blvd.
Toledo, OH 43606
419-473-8220