The Clarke County School Board has announced plans to resume instruction August 3rd, and intends to consult with its school re-entry task force to implement safety measures. The school board released a statement Friday that it will remain in regular contact with the Department of Public Health, Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and local health and government officials to receive up to date information as final decisions are made.
Decisions made by the re-entry task force are based off of models by the Georgia Department of Education, the CDC, the Georgia Department of Health, and other entities. The task force is in an initial planning phase, and counts CCSD Director of Nursing Amy Roark among its members. Roark, also a member of the Athens-Clarke County Board of Health and the President-Elect of the Georgia Association of School Nurses, is in frequent communication with local health teams and school health leaders across the state.
The task force has laid out some initial considerations, determining that the school nurse present at every school will become the institution’s COVID-19 point of contact, assisting with communications and operations related to the disease.
Also announced were plans to open the Hilsman Health center as a “Wellness Clinic” on July 6th. It will provide immunizations, sports physicals, and COVID-19 antibody testing to every CCSD student and staff member.
Inside schools, the task force intends to reconfigure classrooms according to social distancing guidelines. Students and staff will be required to wear face-coverings and stay home if sick, and temperature checks will be conducted for every student and staff member before entering school buildings. Increased focus will be placed on illness prevention techniques, such as hygiene and staff training.
Fall athletics will be conducted according to health protocols created by the Georgia High School Association.
Families concerned with what to do next are asked by the Clarke County School Board to obtain a face mask for their child and review hand washing protocols. The school board intends to announce further decisions in July, and will consult with parents, students, staff, and other stake holders as plans solidify.