Missouri releases updated guidance on reopening schools
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. — This week, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education updated its school reopening guidelines.
That document now has information about the reactive strategies Missouri schools need to be prepared for, including what to do if a student or staff member becomes symptomatic at school.
This week, Governor Mike Parson was in Kirksville and met with nearly 20 superintendents from northeast Missouri school.
He shared the new guidelines, and said he feels many of the districts in this area are prepared to reopen.
"Preparing for testing, if we need testing someday, if we need contact tracing - do they have a plan in place, what are they going to do if that occurs, and most of them are all pretty well aware of that. They were all well aware of the social-distancing, which is critical to that, and I think some of the things was how do we do the bus routes, how do you feed the kids and how do you maintain that 6 feet of social-distancing as much as possible."
Parson adds that some of the superintendents still had concerns about masks, and when if they will be needed.
"Some questions whether you wear a mask, whether you don't - but different ones were doing it different ways. Again, I think they're all aware of the situation, the risks involved, and I think they are taking that very seriously and taking appropriate action to try to limit the risk as much as possible."
The guidelines are designed to provide clarity and consistency for Missouri school leaders.
Right now, there are now statewide health mandates for school reopening.
Local school boards and local health agencies have the authority to implement more restrictive measures if they feel it is necessary.
The following are highlights from the guidelines from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education:
School schools screen students for COVID-19 onsite? Children should be visually inspected for signs and symptoms of illness as they enter the school and/or classroom. School leaders may also elect to perform additional symptom or temperature screening at school, but should ensure those procedures do not force bottlenecks at building entry points, creating unnecessary situations where students cannot maintain adequate physical distance from one another.
How should K-12 schools screen staff members for COVID-19? Health data continues to reveal that adults are much more likely to spread the novel coronavirus than children, unlike other viruses (e.g. influenza) where children are more likely to transmit the virus to others. Therefore, school staff members should self-screen at home, following the same protocol listed above for families screening students at home. Schools should also screen staff members upon entry to the building each day, and that screening may include a temperature check.
How should K-12 schools screen visitors for COVID-19? Schools should limit visitors inside the building and during the upcoming school year. Schools should identify options to conduct meetings with families remotely (conference call or videoconference) so parents can continue to engage with teachers (e.g. parent-teacher conferences) and participate in necessary discussions (e.g. Individualized Education Program (IEP) and 504 plan meetings; discipline conversations). If visitors are unable to join a remote meeting or conduct their business without entering the building, schools should screen the visitor for COVID-19 by asking questions about symptoms and performing a temperature check, and then limit the visitor's movement throughout the school building. Schools may consider a designated visitor space/room where physical distancing measures are enforced. A record of visitors inside the school should also be kept, and it should include areas of the school that were visited and the time the visitor entered and exited the building.
What physical distancing measures should K-12 schools have in place to protect against the spread of COVID-19? Schools should assign students to cohorts and limit their exposure to other cohorts within the building. This means that students should stay with the same group of students and adults throughout the day. If classes must rotate, schools should consider rotating teachers, rather than moving groups of students throughout the school building. Strict adherence to a specific size of student groups should be discouraged, as this may limit the ability to provide in-person education. Schools should also implement and enforce assigned seating, and keep records of those seating charts to assist with identifying close contacts in the event a member of the school community is diagnosed with COVID-19.
How should physical distancing take place on a school bus? School bus transportation may not readily allow for physical distancing. However, strategies to reduce contact on buses and risk of infection can include: Screening of COVID-19 symptoms at home prior to getting on the bus, encouraging hand hygiene upon boarding the bus, assigning students to seats so contacts are stable, seating siblings together, loading the bus from back to front, encouraging the use of face masks during transport, having windows open when safe and weather-permitting, providing bus drivers and monitors onboard with personal protective equipment, such as face masks and face shields and/or eye protection, as long as these do not impair driving, the use of plexiglass or another barrier around the school bus driver is currently pending approval by the Federal Highway and Traffic Safety Administration. Schools may also ask families that are able to transport their students to and from school or arrange for carpools, when possible, to reduce the number of students riding buses in the upcoming school year.
How should physical distancing take place during meal times? Keep students in cohorts during meal times and, when possible, have students eat in their classrooms rather than moving through the school building. Schools may consider bringing meals directly to classrooms but should make efforts to ensure nutritional value and appealing menu choices are not sacrificed. For older students, multiple separate lunch periods may be created and alternate locations, such as an outdoor environment or large indoor spaces (e.g. gymnasium), may be used for lunches with proper supervision.
Should K-12 students and staff wear face coverings? Face coverings are an important strategy to reduce transmission of the novel coronavirus, primarily by reducing the spread of infection from the wearer to those around. Young children may have difficulty complying with the proper use of face coverings and may have increased face touching, mask chewing, mask trading and other behavior that could increase risk of infection. For this reason, continuous usage of face coverings is not recommended for young children. Older children, such as those in middle and high school, are likely to be able to follow guidance regarding proper mask usage. Additionally, these students are less easily cohorted. Thus, the use of face coverings can provide an additional layer of protection against the spread of infection. Face coverings should be considered for all age groups during periods when students are not cohorted or cannot physically distance (e.g. in hallways or during entry and dismissal periods). As noted above, it is also appropriate for all students to wear masks or face coverings while riding the bus.
Should K-12 staff members wear face coverings? It is recommended that school leaders require school staff members to wear face coverings, as the data indicates COVID_19 transmission is more likely from adult to student, than from student to adult. Face coverings should be worn by staff members at all times when they are in close proximity to students or other staff members. In lecture formats, where the teacher is stationary and appropriately physically distanced from students, face coverings may not be necessary. In some circumstances, such as when working with young children or deaf or hard of hearing students, they need to convey facial expressions and mouth movements is important; in these circumstances, the use of a clear face shield is preferred to no face covering at all. As noted above, bus drivers and monitors onboard a school bus should wear personal protective equipment. Any teacher or staff member who is working closely with symptomatic children must wear medical grade masks and eye protections to ensure that staff are protected.
What should K-12 school leaders do when a student or staff member presents with COVID-19 symptoms while at school? All students and staff members with a fever of at least 100.4 degrees or other symptoms consistent with COVID-19 should seek medical care for further evaluation and instructions. All students and staff members who become symptomatic while at the school require immediate isolation and should wear a medical-grade mask until they are no longer in the building. Students who are sick should be walked out of the building to their parent/guardian. It is recommended that each school have a room or space, separate from the nurse's office, where students or staff members who are feeling sick or appear ill can be evaluated and/or wait to be picked up by a parent/guardian. These rooms/spaces should be set up in such a way as to prevent cross infection among students/staff who may be experiencing different symptoms. For example, in the case that multiple symptomatic students must be in the same room, shower curtain-type barriers should be installed to separate potentially infected students or staff. The room should be disinfected immediately after any individual exhibiting symptoms of illness has exited. Strict physical distancing should be required and a record should be kept of all persons who entered the room. Staff members entering the room should wear appropriate personal protective equipment, including goggles or face shields, gloves, and medical-grade masks and gowns. Students who do not display symptoms of illness can be seen and treated in the nurse's office. This would include students who are injured during the school day or students with special health care needs. The use of nebulizers and other aerosol generating procedures should be avoided in the school setting when possible. When these are necessary and/or when contact with respiratory secretions cannot be avoided, such as when suctioning is required, medical grade PPE including eye protection, a fit tested N95 respirator, gloves and a gown should be worn during care.
To read more about the updated guidelines, click here.