We have enjoyed welcoming our onsite students back into the classrooms and welcoming our digital students to online instruction! Both groups are starting to settle into a routine for daily academic engagement and building positive relationships. We are working through the adjustments of staggered attendance, digital learning, and COVID care. We are so grateful for creative and dedicated teachers and diligent, engaged learners! We appreciate the family support network and your patience and understanding as we work hard to provide high quality instruction and safe and secure learning environments during the challenges.

You have likely ready the read the recent news reports about confirmed cases being identified on our school campuses. We never approached our school reopening with the goal or the outcome to achieve ZERO positive cases of COVID-19. That would have been unrealistic and unattainable considering the data and the knowledge that over 50 students in our community were positive for COVID the week before school even opened. Our goal was - and continues to be - to provide school in the safest way possible in order to continue educating our students in the best way possible. We commit to teach kids and work hard to control and maintain the potential spreading of this virus, being proactive to implement safeguards along the way. As stated often, we strive for responsiveness.

One of our main focus areas is PREVENTION. That’s where we need YOUR help!

PLEASE keep your child at home and do not send them to school if your

• Child has received a positive COVId-19 test
• Child is exhibiting COVID-like symptoms – call the school nurse if unsure
• Child has been in close contact to someone highly suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19

We have created a MCS Student COVID-19 Decision Tree for an easy reference to guide the decisions for your student and place consistent safeguards in our school community. Color copies have been printed and will be distributed to all students in K-7 this week.

Working together and applying conservative action when symptoms occur is the best chance we have to continue to offer onsite school for all families. Please spend some time reviewing the MCS Student COVID-19 Decision Tree. This flowchart is now available as a printable PDF as well as a JPEG image for quick reference on phones. Please also look for a printed copy in the school papers of your K-7th grader.

LINK HERE: MCS STUDENT COVID-19 DECISION TREE

OUR SERVICE GOAL:
GET THE MOST STUDENTS IN FRONT OF THE MOST TEACHERS
FOR THE MOST DAYS
IN THE YEAR.

• On Saturday night, the parent of 2nd grade Michael is showing some COVID related symptoms but cannot discriminate between COVID and allergy since he has a history of allergies. Allergy medicine is provided on Sunday with improvements. Michael is sent to school on Tuesday. On Thursday, Michael's symptoms worsen and he spikes a temp, and nausea is observed. He is promptly sent home from school for 10-day isolation, and his mother takes him for a COVID test that same afternoon. Two days later, Michael’s test results returned negative and his doctor provided a positive strep test. Michael is given permission to return to school.
  
  
• 4th Grade Brittany was sent home for a 14-day isolation from school because she was identified as a Close Contact with a confirmed positive case within her classroom. She remained asymptomatic and thus was not given a COVID test. In addition, a negative test would not reduce the 14-day isolation. Brittany has two school-age siblings. Both continued to attend onsite school.
  
  
• Ryan is a 7th grader who is best friends with Jacob. Jacob just informed Ryan that his father is positive for COVID-19. Jacob is now a Direct Close Contact and will be informing the school that he will be staying home for 14 days as a Close Contact. Ryan had absolutely no direct contact with Jacob’s father. Ryan continues to attend school because no direct firsthand contact occurred.
• Modified: Ryan spent the night at Jacob’s house a full week before Jacob’s father demonstrated symptoms. Ryan can still attend school because the window for Close Contact is 2 days before the onset of symptoms or 2 days before testing if asymptomatic. IF Ryan was with Jacob’s father the day before the symptoms presented, then Ryan’s family should also call the school and report a 14-day isolation and not send Ryan to school.

• 11th-grade teacher, Mrs. Vines, visited the school clinic because she was demonstrating COVID like symptoms. The clinic verified that Mrs. Vines had an accumulation of symptoms and recommended she be sent home for 10 days following the COVID symptom protocol. The school immediately began contact tracing for Mrs. Vines and identified a small group of students and a teaching assistant as Close Contacts. These five people were contacted and sent home for a 14-day isolation period. One day later, Mrs. Vines received a positive COVID-19 test. No additional isolation responses needed to be implemented as the school treated her symptoms as a positive case. The staff and families were notified of the confirmed, positive case.

We will follow our operation plans to implement a consistent onsite school schedule
in two-week intervals.
We will announce the attendance plans for August 17-28
by Wednesday, August 12.