FUSD strives to provide timely notifications of on-campus exposures, and is reporting information as the District is informed of positive cases.
We ask each member of our community to support this effort by reporting positive cases for students (by parents/guardians) or themselves (for staff) as soon as possible. When sites receive this information, FUSD’s COVID Response Team helps those individuals determine the date they may return to school/work, and initiates notifications.
We recognize and understand frustration with notifications that arrive well after exposure, and we apologize for delayed notifications in the first days after winter break. Our goal and current standard is to provide notifications within one workday of receiving a report of a positive case, even if that case is reported to us well after the fact. FUSD’s COVID-19 District Safety Plan outlines our commitment to notifying our community of every positive case that was on campus during the infectious period, regardless of when it is reported. Therefore, as has been the case in some examples, notifications come late when there is a delay in the school site and/or the district being made aware of a positive case.
FUSD issues the following notices when we receive a report from a site that an employee or student has tested positive:
General/Site Notices to Staff: FUSD will send out an all staff notice when there is a case identified. This broad notice will not have specific details or information about the case. This letter will inform employees that an individual was at a worksite during their infectious period. These notices are sent at the end of each day, with the number of COVID cases provided to the COVID team for that day.
Site-Specific Notices to Parents/Guardians: FUSD sends a notice to parents/guardians of students in a school community of any positive COVID-19 case on their student’s school site while maintaining confidentiality as required by local, state, and federal laws. These notices are sent at the end of each day, to the entire parent/guardian community of school sites where an exposure took place, based on the COVID cases sent to the COVID team for that day.
Close Contact/Exposure Notifications for Staff: Employees determined to be a close contact (within 6 feet for 15+ minutes over 24 hours) of an individual who is positive or presumed positive will receive an email notification with next steps, instructions for potential quarantine and testing information. These notices are generally sent the same day, or within 24 hours, of the COVID team receiving the report of COVID case.
Close Contact/Exposure Notifications for Students: In January 2022, FUSD shifted from individual close contact notifications to group tracing for students, a more rapid notification process which results in more individuals receiving a notification of possible exposure with next steps and testing information. These notices are sent at the end of each day, to the entire parent/guardian community of school sites where an exposure took place, based on the COVID cases sent to the COVID team for that day.
