JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — On Tuesday, Duval County Public Schools issued an update on the coronavirus.
According to DCPS:
"Dr. Diana Greene, superintendent of Duval County Public Schools, has directed several actions for district and schools to take to combat the spread of the Coronavirus, COVID-19. These actions address precautions upon re-entry to school after travel, new student registrations, school cleaning, school attendance, and student and staff travel.
Duval County Public Schools remains in close communication with the Florida Department of Health to make appropriate operational decisions and to keep the public aware of the most current recommendations from the department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The district has created a special webpage to keep Duval County Public Schools stakeholders aware of operational decisions and impacts associated with the Coronavirus. That website has been updated with the information below and can be viewed at www.duvalschools.org/coronavirus.
Re-entry of Students Traveling
- Duval County Public Schools will request all parents and guardians to inform their schools by telephone if people in their household have traveled to areas that the CDC has deemed to be high-risk for widespread sustained transmission of the virus. Upon notification, schools will work with district and community health officials to determine the appropriate action regarding re-entry of those children into the school. The district will make this request with a letter to be distributed through schools and with other communications later this week.
Registration of New Students from High Risk Areas
- Any new families arriving to Duval from high-risk areas are also requested to telephone the school for instructions prior to registration. School officials will work with district and community health officials to determine the appropriate registration and attendance plan for those students. A registration in-take center will be established in the district’s Parent Resource Center to assist these families. Families arriving from high-risk areas are asked not to visit schools, but to interact with the district by telephone. Families that arrive at schools will be asked to conduct registration through the Parent Resource Center.
Sanitization of School Facilities
- Beginning Wednesday, March 4, the district will begin a process of sanitizing and disinfecting all schools using Center for Biocide Chemistries approved viral disinfectants. All schools will be treated between Wednesday and the end of Spring Break, March 15. The district is prepared to deploy the sanitizing procedure immediately to a school or district facility determined to be potentially exposed to the Coronavirus.
- Bulk hand sanitizer is being distributed to all schools, and schools have been advised to ensure adequate supply of soap and paper towels for student and employee use.
School Attendance
- Students who provide written documentation from their healthcare provider advising them to refrain from attending school due to the Coronavirus will be fully accommodated with home health education plans. Families of these students are asked to coordinate with their school principals to develop an appropriate education plan on a case-by-case basis.
- For all other students, normal school attendance policies remain in effect. The district is prepared to make school-by-school decisions with guidance from state and local health officials as necessary.
Employee and Student Travel
- Any school-sponsored or district-sponsored travel to high-risk areas will be cancelled. To the best of its ability, the district will work with families to pursue refunds, if possible.
- Currently planned school-sponsored or district-sponsored out-of-state travel which is non-refundable for students and employees may be allowed if a trip is to an area which is not on the CDC’s list of concern. District administration will review each trip on a case-by-case basis. If an employee or student is not comfortable traveling, those individuals will be excused from the event and every effort will be made to release the student or employee from any financial penalty for non-attendance. There will be no academic consequences for non-attendance.
- Currently planned school-sponsored or district-sponsored out-of-state-travel which is refundable will be reviewed by district administration to determine if the travel is permissible.
- Until further notice, new out-of-country travel will not be approved.
- Until further notice, new out-of-state travel will not be approved, except for emergency situations or highly-mission critical employee travel.
- The district is proceeding with caution regarding in-state travel. All in-state travel must be approved by a regional superintendent or cabinet-level supervisor. Trips requiring air travel, events held in closed spaces, or events with 1,000 or more participants will be carefully considered on an individual basis.
- In-County: There are no restrictions at this time for in-county field trips. The district will continue to work with the Florida Department of Health and monitor any potential issues in our local community.
- Students and employees who are ill will not be permitted to travel. Prior to traveling, students and employees will be made aware that if they become ill during the course of travel they may not be allowed to return via public transportation if the transporting authority makes the determination that the individual poses a risk to others being transported. If a student is not allowed to return due to illness or mandatory isolation, a responsible adult will be required to remain with the student. Both students and employees with exposure to others with the Coronavirus will be expected to self-isolate as recommended by the Florida Department of Health.
We are currently working with Florida High School Athletic Association regarding regional and state athletic events and will provide guidance to schools once that information is received."
Haley Garrett has three children in Duval County Public Schools, so she's keeping a close eye on the coronavirus.
“It keeps getting closer and closer, so of course there's a lot of fears that go along with it,” Garrett said. “I think everybody's scared of it.”
At Tuesday night's school board meeting, Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene outlined the 15-point update for parents.
“[Wednesday], all superintendents will be on a phone conference with the governor related to, ‘What are we doing with our procedures, what are we doing to support our schools and our families?” Greene said.
Garrett is preparing at home, telling her kids to cover their cough and wash their hands.
“They want to be all over their friends, so it is a scary situation,” Garrett said.
She appreciates the schools taking these steps.
“It makes me feel better and safer that my kids going to be going somewhere where they’ve taken all precautions,” Garrett said.
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