Children in a pre-kindergarten class at Charles Ellis Montessori Academy were sent home Thursday after possible contact with someone at school who tested positive for COVID-19, according to a statement from the school district office. of Savannah-Chatham County.
According to the district office, only one class of 21 students was affected. The Charles Ellis administration was notified of the positive COVID case at 1:45 p.m. Thursday and by 2 p.m. had begun calling parents of students in that class to pick up their children immediately. Students in the affected room were kept in the room until they were escorted to their parents. A deep clean in the affected room is already underway, according to the district.
According to school protocol, children sent home must quarantine for 14 days.
The rest of the school population went to school on Friday as usual.
The school sent this notice to parents and guardians on Friday morning:
“Dear Family of Charles Ellis Montessori Academy,
Yesterday afternoon August 5, the school was informed of a positive case of COVID 19 within our building. In accordance with district COVID protocols, all individuals considered “close contacts” have been contacted and a letter has been sent with quarantine guidelines. Deep cleaning procedures have been implemented. Rest assured that all District protocols and guidelines continue to be monitored and followed.
Yours,
Tanya [Melville, principal]”
As for avoiding disruption to learning, the district’s statement continued, “Students receive technology if they don’t have access to their own. Parents must register to receive the devices. The platform ItsLearning is a great tool to allow students who are unable to attend school in these cases the opportunity to stay up to date and on pace with homework.”
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This means that district COVID protocols and contact tracing procedures are being tested.
“As a parent, I’m glad Charles Ellis took this seriously and did everything he could,” said Michael Johnson, a District 7 board member whose son attends the school. Her son is in a different class than the one affected. “They are doing the right things and making sure everyone is safe and doing exactly what they need to do.”
Johnson added that this was the first COVID exposure he had heard of at Charles Ellis, even since last spring when some students returned to school in the hybrid model. “Nobody blames nobody or blames nobody. It’s just a circumstance that happened,” he said.
Protocols already in place
Christina Chancey, a district cluster nurse, explained the contact tracing procedure at a July 27 press event. “We’re so much better prepared this year than last year,” Chancey said.
District nurses received training on contact tracing and then in turn formed teams of nurses in each school. “Then we have a lead, that’s the liaison between the district and the health department,” Chancey said. Each school is prepared with questionnaires and tips.
Contact tracing guidelines include collecting data to determine where exposure began and how many people were possibly exposed to COVID-19. Once the person with the positive COVID exposure is identified, “If they were symptomatic and at school, then you know that date. But you come back two days before symptoms; maybe they weren’t at school the day she was symptomatic and they went to get tested, but they were there the day before or the day before,” Chancey explained.
Some protocols are also in place for vaccinated people who are close contacts but do not have symptoms. “The advice will be, if during this 14 day period they develop symptoms, they should stay home and test immediately and notify the school,” Chancey explained. She added that vaccination status is voluntary information that can only be obtained during a contact tracing interview.
The nurses aren’t the only team members, according to Chancey. “Everyone needs to understand that this is one of the biggest mitigation strategies,” she added. “You wake up. You have a new, unusual COVID-like symptom. You need to stay home.”
The District has confirmed that it is tracking positive COVID cases on other sites and will post the most up-to-date COVID case count on the District’s website as sccpss.com by the close of business. tuesday.
Barbara Augsdorfer is an education and nonprofits reporter for the Savannah Morning News. Reach her at BAugsdorfer@gannett.com or on Twitter @Babs7983.
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