During its July meeting, the Attala County School Board approved reopening guidelines for traditional, face-to-face learning this upcoming school year. Following guidelines from the Mississippi Department of Health and the CDC, in-person classes will begin Aug. 6.
In the event of an outbreak or multiple individual COVID-19 cases, however, a local medical advisory committee will be consulted for recommendations on campus closures. Individual classes may be quarantined if there are multiple cases within the same classroom. All students and staff will be notified if they come in close contact with a positive case.
The classroom rules will also apply to extracurricular activities. If there is a school closure, all extracurriculars will be canceled for the day.
Any student with a temperature above 100.4 or displaying COVID-19 symptoms will be isolated in a designated quarantine area and parents will be contacted to pick the student up.
The parent and student must then follow these procedures:
— If a student exhibits COVID-19 symptoms but does not test positive, he may return to school after 72 hours of being symptom-free and/or provide medical clearance from the physician.
— If a student tests positive for COVID-19, he must quarantine for 10 days and be symptom-free without medication for 24 hours prior to returning to school.
— If a student has a household member who tests positive for COVID-19 but with whom they have not been in close contact, that student may return to school the next day.
— If a student has been in close contact with an individual who tests positive for COVID-19, he must quarantine for 10 days and be symptom-free without medication for 24 hours.
Distance learning will also be provided for students during closure or quarantine periods via Canvas.
According to the guidelines, to prevent the spread of illness, parents or guardians should perform an assessment of their child’s health before sending them to school. Parents will be required to report positive test results to the school principal or nurse, and employees will be required to report positive test results to their supervisor. When confirmation of a known positive case is received, the ACSD will notify the local health department.
Hand sanitizer will be available on all buses, in hallways, classrooms, bathrooms, and at school entrances and exits. Parents are encouraged to bring their students to and from school in their own automobiles.
