Charger Pride
A Message from Stagg High School's Principal, Eric Olsen
Dear Stagg Families,
We are well into our second week having transitioned to Stage 2 of the D230Proud Return to Learn Plan. To date, approximately 60% of our families have elected to participate in the Blended Onsite Learning Model. I cannot express how proud I am of our school community as we welcomed students back into our building. Students have done a wonderful job following all of the school’s safety protocols and our staff is quickly adjusting to the unique setting of hybrid learning. Although things look different within the school, students generally were very happy to walk the halls of their school, see some of their friends and reunite with staff that they have formed relationships with.
One of the goals of Stage 2 of the plan is to train our students and staff on the safety protocols we have in place to increase the safety of all who are in our building. As we hope to transition to Stage 3 of the plan, with students attending 2 days a week, the student and staff experience in the new school environment is critical. In Stage 3, more students will be in class and in hallways, thus a solid foundation of safety protocols is essential.
Here are some important reminders for those students who are attending onsite learning:
- Masks are required to be worn over the nose and mouth at all times inside the building, except while eating during lunch.
- Students who refuse to follow the mask requirements or regularly fail to follow the requirements will be removed from onsite learning and will be required to follow the Fully Remote Learning Option.
- Self-certifications must be completed before a student is allowed into the building and parents MUST make sure that their child has completed the form either through the Skyward App or with a paper copy. Parents can also verify the completion of the electronic version through Skyward Family Access. Utilization of the Skyward App Wellness Screener is the fastest and most efficient way to move a student quickly into the school building.
- IDs on lanyards must be worn at all times and must be visible.
9th Grade Physicals and 12th Grade Meningitis Vaccination
If you have not turned in your child’s freshman physical and dental examination or Senior Meningitis Vaccination verification form, you MUST do so by October 15th. Illinois School Code requires every student to have their freshman physical/dental examination and senior Meningitis Vaccination verification to be complete and on file with the school no later than October 15th. Failure to do so will result in your child being held out of both onsite and remote learning until it is complete. Several notifications have been sent to families and an all call was sent out this week if we do not have these documents on file.
Notification of Positive Covid-19 Individuals on Campus
As you saw this week, Stagg High School will notify our community any time there is a situation where a student, staff member or visitor to the building has received a positive Covid-19 diagnosis. This only pertains to individuals who were on campus at the time they were potentially Covid-19 positive. No notification is sent for Covid-19 positive individuals in our school community who were not on campus.
We expect that there will be times when individuals who are on our campus test positive for Covid-19. In a community as large as ours, this is inevitable. The purpose of the safety protocols we have put into place is to mitigate the potential for an individual who contracts Covid-19 outside of the building to spread it inside of the building. To date it appears that our safety protocols have been successful in this respect, a credit to everyone taking the safety protocols seriously.
Contact tracing that follows the Cook County Department of Public Health's guidelines are followed with each and every notification we receive. We will notify all families when this situation arises. Those individuals (and student families) who are determined to have been in potential close contact with a confirmed Covid-19 individual will be immediately contacted and be given quarantine guidance. The Cook County Department of Public Health is contacted in each case and is also notified of any potential close contacts. Please remember that the Illinois Department of Public Health defines “close contact” as contact with a Covid-19 positive individual 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms or 48 hours prior to the collection of an asymptomatic individual’s Covid-19 test specimen. The close contact must have been within 6 feet of the Covid-19 positive individual for 15 cumulative minutes or more.
Under the law, the school or school district cannot give any information to families that may identify who a Covid-19 positive individual may be or who was determined to be a close contact. In a school setting, any additional information we share could lead to the identification of these individuals so we must be very careful with the information that we share.
Again, our safety protocols have worked, but it requires EVERYONE to be vigilant, both inside and outside of school. Please follow the IDPH guidelines for Covid-19 safety whether in school or outside of school. Large gatherings of individuals who do not follow safety protocols or other high risk behaviors can result in the spread of this virus. We care about our students, staff, their families and their loved ones. This is how we show our Charger Pride! We follow safety protocols inside and outside of school because we care about each other and all of our Charger Family!
In a year of many firsts, another great start! Have a great October and GO Chargers!
Eric A. Olsen
Principal
Amos Alonzo Stagg High School
Email: webmaster@d230.org
Website: https://www.d230.org/Stagg
Location: 8015 West 111th Street, Palos Hills, IL, USA
Phone: 708-974-7400
Twitter: @stagghighschool