Heritage COVID-19 Safety Protocol
Our student and staff safety is our priority as we continue to provide an in-person education during a pandemic.
Safe Return to School Update May 2022
Update 01/10/22
- If you have a fever and are sick, please stay home.
- For those exposed to Covid and show no symptoms, mask wearing is recommended for 5 – 10 days. Arizona does not have a mask mandate, so this is a voluntary decision.
- The CDC has reduced the quarantine time down to 5 days for those who test positive. From the CDC: “On January 4, CDC updated COVID-19 isolation and quarantine recommendations with shorter isolation (for asymptomatic and mildly ill people) and quarantine periods of 5 days to focus on the period when a person is most infectious, followed by continued masking for an additional 5 days. These updated recommendations also facilitate individual social and well-being needs, return to work, and maintenance of critical infrastructure. Preliminary data suggest that the Omicron variant is up to three times more infectious than the Delta variant [14]. With the recommended shorter isolation and quarantine periods, it is critical that people continue to wear well-fitting masks and take additional precautions for 5 days after leaving isolation or quarantine [15]. You can end isolation after 5 full days if you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and your other symptoms have improved.”
Introduction
Heritage Academy welcomed students back to campus on August 24 with a hybrid schedule and will move to a full in-person schedule after Labor Day. (Full details from the principal here). Will things look different? Yes, they will. However, what is not changing is the Heritage Academy spirit and the entire community's dedication to continuity of learning.
We acknowledge that there may be COVID-19 outbreaks in AZ locally, regionally, or statewide that will require schools to close. We anticipate that we will have to toggle between in-class learning and distance learning, and to that end, our planning started before the last school year ended.
Our faculty quickly developed innovative teaching skills in the distance learning environment this past spring. Heritage Gateway scholars did not miss one single day of instruction throughout this difficult time. To become even more proficient and effective in the distance learning environment, each one of our faculty members will continue to receive additional training throughout the year.
Will things change between now and when school opens? Possibly, but with a solid reopen plan as our foundation, we will pivot and adjust as needed.
Our Fall 2020 Reopen Plan
We invite you to read our reopening plan. The goal for the plan is to help parents better understand the steps we are taking to keep the Heritgae Community safe and healthy, and how we will maintain continuity of learning.
You may also want to review our MITIGATION PLAN, and FACE COVERING POLICY.
If you have not already submitted your COVID Parent Acknowledgement Form, please check with your scholar to see if they have received one for you to sign and bring to campus.
Safety First
MORNING SCREENINGS
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- Check in with your child each morning for signs of illness. If your child has a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher, they should not go to school.
- Make sure your child does not have a sore throat or other signs of illness, like a cough, diarrhea, severe headache, vomiting, or body aches.
- If your child has had close contact to a COVID-19 case, they should not go to school. Follow guidance on what to do when someone has known exposure. (CDC recommendations)
MINIMIZING VISITORS
For the protection of our scholars and staff, we will not be able to accomodate parents or family dropping off homework or lunches. Please make sure your scholar has everything they need prior to leaving to leaving their house in the morning. We will also be minimizing visitors on campus during this COVID pandemic time. Thank you for your understanding.
Enhanced Cleaning on Campus
- Our janitorial vendors will be providing deeper cleaning sessions during the week.
- We will be providing hand-washing stations for scholars to use prior to entering their classrooms and throughout the day.
- We are adding portable air purifiers with HEPA filters to each classroom. These caputure 99% of air polutants and are an added measure to help keep our scholars healthy at school.
- We have added cleanining routines which include scholars wiping down desks and equipment at the beginning and end of each class period.
- We have added disinfecting protocols for the vans/transportation and the floors of the athletic rooms.
Vendors
From how our lunches are served to the way our vending machines are filled, our staff has ensured that safety and cleanliness are our top priority for each vendor service on campus.
Our vending machine vendor is taking extra precautions in the delivery and installation of all food items. See precautions HERE.
Our photography vendor, Lifetouch has added extra safety measures, such as digital check-in, to help increase safety on picture day. See video HERE for all their changes.