COVID-19 Operations and Learning Plan

We are planning for a full-scale reopening. This means that, provided that it remains safe to do so, we intend to bring back all of our students. Current rates of COVID-19 transmission in the county are minimal as defined by the California Department of Public Health, and if they remain so at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year, we are planning for and intend to reopen fully for in-person instruction as permitted. We are all expecting a much more "normal" school experience for our students next year. We understand that some families may choose to continue distance learning and we will have a limited option for this as well. More information is forthcoming as we continue to plan.

Our return may maintain some of our current COVID-19 safety protocols, such as wearing masks, our rigorous school sanitization and disinfection efforts, and maintaining our "Stay Home When Sick" policy. We will be communicating what students can expect as we approach the 2021-22 school year and gather additional information and updates from local, state, and federal health officials.

Currently, students are not required to receive the vaccine to return to school.

At Wiseburn, testing for SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) will be available for all staff and students at minimum once per week. Results will be available to the patient and District with 24-48 hours of test administration.

More specifically, as defined by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), there are several circumstances under which a student or staff member might undergo testing. Below, we outline these circumstances and considerations for testing implementation in K-12 schools:

• Symptomatic testing: This testing is used for individuals with symptoms of COVID-19, either at home or at school. In this situation, the school guidance requires that these individuals stay home and isolate in case they are infectious. The Guidance includes the possibility of return to school in the case of a negative test for SARS-CoV-2 and 24 hours after fever is resolved and symptoms are improving.
• Response testing: This testing is used to identify positive individuals once a case has been identified in a given stable group. Response-based testing can be provided for symptomatic individuals or for asymptomatic individuals with known or suspected exposure to an individual infected with SARS-CoV-2.
• Asymptomatic testing: This testing can be used for surveillance, usually at a cadence of every 2 weeks or less frequently, to understand whether schools have higher or lower rates of COVID19 rates than the community, to guide decisions about safety for schools and school administrators, and to inform LHDs about district level in-school rates. Asymptomatic testing can also be used for screening, usually at a higher cadence (weekly or twice weekly) than 39 surveillance testing, to identify asymptomatic or pre-symptomatic cases, in order to exclude cases that might otherwise contribute to in-school transmission. Screening testing is indicated for situations associated with higher risk (higher community transmission, individuals at higher risk of transmission (e.g., adults and high school students transmit more effectively than elementary aged students).

Used in conjunction with other mitigation strategies, testing for COVID-19 provides an additional tool to support safe and successful K-12 in-person instruction. Testing can allow for early identification of cases and exclusion from school to prevent transmission.

Contact your school site secretary directly:

Juan de Anza Elementary School: Susan Castellanos (scastellanos@wiseburn.org)
138th Street School: Kristian Forte-Hill (kforte@wiseburn.org)
Juan Cabrillo Elementary School: Laura Nilsson (lnilsson@wiseburn.org)
Dana Middle School: Sarah Moulton (smoulton@wiseburn.org)

Parents and caretakers should review the Parent Guide to Reopening Schools for 2020-2021 (English / Español) and follow all applicable safety measures, including conducting self-screenings and wearing a mask.

Generally, all families in our community can follow the recommended guidance from public health officials:

• Wear a mask in public.
• Wash your hands regularly.
• Keep at least six feet of physical distance when in public.
• Limit mixing with people you don't live with.

Keeping lines of communication open to our community is important to us. As such, we have some feedback options available to the community should they want to communicate with our District staff and school board collectively.

To submit a public comment that is read into the record at our school board meetings, please use the form link listed on our BoardDocs page. Submissions to the form are accepted until 2 p.m. PST the day of the upcoming board meeting. If you wish to read your public comment live at an upcoming Board meeting, please indicate so on the form and during the public comment portion of the meeting, your stated email address will be added so you may read your comment live. These comments are public and heard by the District, school board, and community at large during our open session board meetings.

To submit feedback less formally, utilize our feedback form listed on our homepage (you can also click here: Share your thoughts with WUSD (English) / Comparta sus pensamientos con WUSD (Spanish)). This form is for submitting thoughts to Wiseburn that typically do not require follow-up and is viewed only by District staff and the school board.

Refer to the Contact section below to see if there's a specific person who may be able to best answer your question. Otherwise, send an email with your question to communication@wiseburn.org. Please add “FAQ” to the subject line of the email.