Current COVID-19 Testing and Other Mitigation in 菠菜网lol正规平台

What COVID-19 mitigation measures are in place?

• Approximately 80% of staff are vaccinated. Those who are not vaccinated are participating in required weekly testing.

   

• Masks: staff and students are required to wear face coverings.

   

• Physical distancing to the extent possible in each class, and using outdoor space when possible

   

• Optimizing ventilation

   

• Ensuring that staff and students stay home when sick with COVID-19 symptoms

   

• Cleaning and hand hygiene

   

Who is participating in COVID-19 testing?

• Employees who are not fully vaccinated are required to participate in weekly asymptomatic testing. 

   

• In order to participate in 菠菜网lol正规平台 sports and athletics, athletes will be subject to testing as per the recommendations of the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).

   

• When there are elevated numbers of confirmed COVID-19 cases that are epidemiologically linked, groups of individuals are tested. 

   

• Students who have been exposed to COVID-19 and are asymptomatic are tested to allow them to remain in school.

   

Why isn’t 菠菜网lol正规平台 using the At-Home tests that the Governor announced in December?

• As of January 5, 菠菜网lol正规平台 has not received any of the At-Home tests that were promised by the State of California. 

   

• The At-Home tests coming from the State of California are for family screening purposes and will not replace any required testing (e.g. for extracurricular sports). 

   

• 菠菜网lol正规平台 will distribute the tests when they are received.

   

Why are we currently not conducting asymptomatic testing for everyone in 菠菜网lol正规平台?

• Most school districts are not conducting asymptomatic testing, which is not required.

   

• A test provides one snapshot in time and may not reflect reality a short time later. The idea of testing can create a false sense of safety for some and the possibility of unnecessary exclusion for others

   

• Prior testing efforts here revealed a range of positivity that was between 0.67% and 1.1%.  Even when we were at a “high rate of community transmission,” the transmission in our schools proved to be very low.

   

• Asymptomatic testing of students requires consent and registration by all of our families.  We have approximately 23,000 families that have registered for testing, but many more (about 46,000) who have not and/or will not agree to testing.

   

• The turnaround time for test results is at least 48 hours from time of submission to the laboratory.

   

• The operational lift of running a testing program surpasses the capacity of the staff that we have available or on campus. For example, large cities such as the City of Long Beach can support the administration of about 5,000 tests per day or 35,000 per week (citywide), while our needs for all staff and students would be close to 80,000 people in a week.

   

• Our review of exposures, over many months, indicates that the factors that prevent spread are asking ill people to stay home until they are symptom free or able to provide evidence that they do not have COVID-19 and to require mask usage.

   

• The core mission of the school district is to provide the highest quality instruction and social-emotional support to our 69,000 students. This is best achieved through in-person instruction while adhering to the required K-12 health and safety protocols per guidance from health officials.