Health & Safety FAQs – FAQs – Spartanburg County School District Six

What additional cleaning protocols will take place this school year?

In anticipation of having students and staff back in our school buildings, the district will implement a variety of health and safety measures. District Six will follow best cleaning practices to prevent the spread of coronavirus. The district is increasing efforts to proactively clean and disinfect classrooms and has supplied custodial staff with hospital-grade products and sanitizer approved by the CDC for cleaning surfaces. We will also provide greater access to cleaning materials for our teachers and staff so that they can clean and disinfect spaces, as needed.Each evening, our custodial team will conduct a thorough cleaning of our spaces, again disinfecting high-touch surfaces like sinks, door handles, tables, and desks. We will continually evaluate our practices and make changes as deemed necessary.

When should a student or employee stay home?

The following school exclusions have been provided by DHEC. These guidelines were developed based on what is currently known about COVID-19 and are subject to change.

Students and staff should be excluded from school if they have:

• Any one (1) of the following

o Fever – or-

o Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing -or -

o Loss of taste or smell -or –

o New or worsening cough”

• Any two (2) of the following:

o Sore throat

o Muscle or body aches

o Chills

o Fatigue

o Headache

o Congestion or runny nose

o Diarrhea

o Nausea or vomiting

What happens if a student/staff member has symptoms listed on the COVID-19 exclusion list?

•Students and staff members who have COVID-19 symptoms will be sent home from school or asked to stay at home if the school is notified by phone

•Students and staff members who have COVID-19 symptoms must present a negative COVID-19 testing result or present a physician statement that the symptoms were diagnosed to be due to another cause other than COVID-19 or stay in isolation until the following criteria is met:

•Ten days have passed since symptoms started

•Twenty-four hours have passed since last fever without fever-reducing medication

•Overall improvement of symptoms

What happens if a student or staff member tests positive for Covid-19?

Students and staff members who test positive for COVID-19 will be required to notify the school nurse and isolate at home until the following criteria is met:

• Ten (10) days have passed since symptoms started

• 24 hours have passed since last fever without taking fever-reducing medication

• Overall improvement of symptoms

What happens if a student or staff member is exposed to a COVID-19 positive person at school?

After the district confirms a positive test result, we will determine with whom the student or staff member has been in close contact. The parents of those students identified as a close contact would be notified that their student needs to be quarantined.

According to DHEC...close contacts must quarantine at home for 14 days from the last day of contact with the COVID-19

positive person.

A student or staff member is considered to be a close contact if they are determined to have been within six (6) feet for fifteen (15) minutes or more to a COVID-19 positive person.

What happens if a student or staff member is exposed to a COVID-19 positive person outside of school?

• Notify the school nurse of the exposure

• Quarantine at home for 14 days from the last day of contact with the COVID-19 positive person

• If the student or staff member lives in the same household as the COVID-19 positive person, they must quarantine for an additional 14 days after their household member has been cleared from their isolation period.

Will you encourage students to take extra safety precautions such as hand washing?

Students and staff will be regularly reminded about the importance of proper handwashing. Teachers will allow more breaks to give students the opportunity to wash their hands, either at a classroom sink or in a restroom.

In addition, we will place no-touch hand sanitizer units throughout our buildings. Students and staff will be encouraged to use hand sanitizer regularly.

Will students and staff be required to wear masks?

Safety is our highest priority. Masks or face shields are essential for the health and safety of our District Six community. We will provide face shields and masks for all employees. Students and staff will need to use a face covering while on the school bus, when entering the building, during transitions, leaving the building, and any time social distancing is not possible.

Is District Six conducting Temperature Checks for students?

Yes, as a safety precaution and for the health and well-being of all students, temperature checks will be taken once students arrive on campus in the car loading area or bus loading. Any student determined to have a fever will be sent home.

Will students still have access to water fountains?

As an added precaution, our water fountains will be turned off in all of our school buildings. Each school will have water filling stations. Students and employees are encouraged to bring the water bottles from home that can be refilled throughout the day.

Will there be a school nurse at every school in District Six?

District Six has a full-time nurse in every elementary and middle school, two full-time nurses at Dorman, and a director of Health Services at the District Office.

Will parents and visitors be allowed on campus?

At this time, families and extended community school members will not be allowed to visit or volunteer on campus. For the safety of our District Six family, parents may not walk their children into the school building. Many larger traditional events such as Meet the Teacher Night, Curriculum Night, or Open House may be alternatively scheduled this year. Options could include virtual presentations instead of on-campus events. We value the importance of these events in developing our relationship with the community and will continue to look for ways to make families feel a part of our schools.