FAQS provide answers on how to get back to school in the fall
Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto/gmast3r
When Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo gave the state’s schools the go-ahead to reopen for in-person learning on Aug. 7, he also made demands of school districts that left many Long Island education officials dejected and furious. Cuomo said the districts had to post on their websites explanations of: how they’d handle coronavirus testing (with specifics, including quarantining) and how they’d do contract tracing if someone tests positive for COVID-19.
The consensus among superintendents, BOCES leaders and Long Island Regent Roger Tilles was that school districts have approximately none of the expertise needed to design such plans, and the state or county health departments needed to be in charge of that task.
Now the Nassau and Suffolk health departments have released a list of frequently asked questions and answers on reopening schools during COVID-19 that have satisfied many educators. After seeing the plan, one superintendent who had been extremely upset before the guidelines were released, said: “It’s good, it has everything we need.”
And Nassau BOCES Superintendent Robert Dillon, who had publicly demanded help from the Nassau County Department of Health, told The Point Wednesday: “The plan the county put forward is definitely on the right track and, except for a few little contradictions we need to get clarity on, has what we need.”
NCDOH and SCDOH FAQs for Sc... by Newsday on Scribd
But Dillon also spoke of increasing pressure from parents against a return to the classroom that seems to be stemming at least partly from the apprehension of teachers.
The hope is that this plan will help quell those fears.
The five-page document includes a glossary of terms that explain, for instance, that isolation is “the separation of someone who is infected with COVID-19 from others to prevent further spread of the disease,” while quarantine is “the separation of someone who has been exposed to a COVID-19 case and now has the potential to develop the disease.”
But the bulk of the document is questions and answers. Here are three, with the full document available below:
*How does a school district contact the local health department to report a COVID-19 case in their district? For all Nassau County calls, questions from parents or members of the public please call our Call Center at 516-227-9570. In Suffolk County, school staff can call 311 to report a case in their district.
*Would you recommend masks for all students even with 6 feet social distance?
Yes. Face coverings should be the norm, not the exception. Breaks from mask wearing should be allowed for meals and other coordinated activities, provided physical distancing is in place.
*What are the recommended protocols if a student tests positive?
Student should immediately be placed on isolation at home for at least 10 days. School staff should assist the local health department in contact tracing efforts by providing a list of probable close contacts (defined as being within 6 feet of the infected student for at least 10 minutes). The identification of close contacts should begin 48 hours before the student became symptomatic, or 48 hours before the student was tested for the COVID-19 virus if asymptomatic. Identified close contacts should also remain at home for 14 days of quarantine from the date of last exposure to the infected student.
Lane Filler is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
