Bulldog Paw Prints
09/27/2021 - 10/01/2021
COVID-19 Testing Information
Good news--Weekly testing at Belle Aire has begun! District 58 has partnered with Northshore Clinical Labs to offer voluntary, free PCR COVID-19 testing for District 58 students and employees.
Northshore can provide three types of testing services for District 58 students and staff:
Weekly screening testing (routine testing)
Symptomatic testing (testing when a student or staff member develops symptoms at school)
Test-to-Stay (testing for situations in which a student has been identified as a close contact.
Test-to-Stay, an IDPH-endorsed process that allows a close contact to remain in school with regular antigen testing, is not currently available. All DuPage County school districts are working with the DuPage County Health Department to determine when this could be implemented; however, we are preparing to implement it and will inform all families and staff if and when it becomes an available option. Stay tuned for more information.
When registering, participants may select which of the above three COVID testing services they wish to use. For instance, a parent can provide consent for their child to participate in all three options, or consent for just symptomatic testing, if desired.
This testing opportunity is offered with no out-of-pocket cost to participants who have health insurance coverage (no copay, cost-sharing, or impact to deductible). For those who choose not to provide their insurance or are uninsured, coverage will be provided at no cost through the HRSA COVID-19 Coverage Assistance Fund. In no event shall the patient be responsible for fees related to their COVID-19 testing provided by Northshore Clinical Labs.
Test: RT-PCR anterior nasal swab OR cheek swab (families can choose their preferred method)
Turnaround Time: Results will typically be made available within 24 hours.
Communication: Results will be made available to District 58 via a secure web-based clinical portal. Each family will also receive a PDF of their student’s results via secure email. Additionally, families will be contacted via phone for positive student results.
Parents/guardians may opt their child in or out at any time, and they may provide immediate consent if their child is symptomatic while at school and desiring an onsite testing option. No testing will be performed without the written consent of a parent or guardian at anytime.
If you would like to register your child for any of the three testing options, please use this Belle Aire specific link. Please fill out one per child. The weekly testing at Belle Aire will take place each Wednesday. The process is quick and painless and we are working hard to ensure that students are not missing much instructional time.
For those of you who have already opted into voluntary testing and for those of you who intend to opt into that, here is the information you will need to access results:
Link to QR code to scan on your smart device
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our nursing staff.
Emergency Drills
We will be holding two fire drills next week--one, in-house practice drill and one drill observed by the Downers Grove Fire Department.
Tuesday, September 28: In-house Practice Drill
Thursday, September 30: Drill Observed by the DGFD
*Students will be informed of both of these drills.
Student Council
We will work with individual families once we understand which students are willing to take on these leadership roles and to support Belle Aire and our community.
Halloween, 2021
We are looking forward to hosting Halloween at Belle Aire School in a similar manner to our pre-pandemic years, and I have some very general and initial information to share today.
Similar to the pre-pandemic years (and currently planning to take place in some format):
-Students wearing costumes
-Parent-attended parade outside of the school
-Classroom parties
If they so choose, students will be able to bring a costume to school with them on October 29, and they will be provided time to change into that later in the day. It works really well if students can wear part of their costume (sweatpants, shorts, leggings, shirt, etc.) and then slip the remaining pieces of the costume over that. Any desired make-up, hair color, hair spray all needs to be applied at home prior to the start of the school day. Any accessory, play weapons (axe, arrows, swords, etc.) that go along with some really great costumes should stay at home.
The costume parade will be held outside of the school and really makes for some great photo opportunities. Because we will be outside, students, if they so choose, will be able to remove their masks for their smiles to be on full display.
Different:
As a district, we are sorting through the logistics of such an event to better understand what does/doesn't need to change in order to comply with COVID-19 guidance.
MORE INFORMATION TO COME
What's to Come?
Monday, 9/27: EARLY DISMISSAL AT 2:00 P.M. FOR ALL STUDENTS
Thursday, 9/30: Fire Drill
About us
Email: bborchelt@dg58.org
Website: www.dg58.org/ba
Location: 3935 Belle Aire Lane, Downers Grove, IL, USA
Phone: 630.719.5820
Twitter: @BBorcheltDG58