Mandated staff safety training includes modules on proper hygiene. In addition, all students will receive instruction and frequent reminders in proper hygiene. Signs throughout all buildings will reinforce and remind staff and students about hygiene. 

• Hands should be washed often with soap and water for 20 seconds. 
• Perform hand hygiene:

  • Upon arrival to and departure from school

  • After blowing one’s nose, coughing, sneezing

  • After use of restroom

  • Before food preparation or before or after eating

  • Before and after routine care for another person

  • After contact with someone who is sick

  • Upon return from the playground and physical education

  • Following glove removal

• Dispensers for hand sanitizer (at least 60%) will be available in every room and in common areas
• More time will be provided for hand washing as students enter and exit the room and before and after eating 

Masks must be worn at all times, following CDC guidance, while in any District 34 building and on the school bus.

Neck gaiters, face shields without masks, and masks with valves are not acceptable face coverings.

The following PPE will be provided by District 34:

• Three 2-ply, reusable, cloth-stitched masks for each staff member and student

• A face shield for every staff member, which can be used in conjunction with a mask

• Disposable masks, placed at entrances and throughout the buildings

• Alternative PPE for students with special needs as needed

• N95 masks for health office and custodial staff who are in direct contact with those who have been confirmed or are suspected to be COVID-19 positive

• Additional PPE for essential staff, and as requested for staff/students

There are very few exceptions to the mask requirement:

• Masks may be removed while eating, when maintaining a 6-foot distance from others

• Teachers and staff members who are alone in their classroom or office space, with doors closed, may remove masks

• The student services department will work, on an individual basis, to provide protections when students who are unable to wear a mask, as certified by a licensed physician and confirmed by the student services department

District 34 has agreements with transportation providers Alltown and Safeway to follow safety and health protocols to protect students and drivers while traveling to and from school: 

• Students, drivers and any other passengers must wear masks on the bus at all times
• If a student does not have a mask, the driver will provide one
• Hand sanitizer will be available on all buses
• Signage will be posted outlining requirements and procedures
• Additional cleaning will occur on buses daily and in between routes on commonly touched areas
• If a child appears to be ill when boarding the bus, the driver will inform the parent that the child should not board and to take the child home. Parents should contact the school office for further assistance. 
• Alltown will have a designated seat for a child that displays symptoms after boarding the bus while enroute to school or home. Alltown will contact the school/district to inform them of the child and the symptoms they have. 
• Drivers must go through symptom and temperature checks or self-certify and verify that they are free of symptoms before the start of each workday. 
• A maximum of 50 people are allowed on each bus, including the driver and any required bus assistant
• Seating charts will be assigned and clearly marked to promote physical distancing as much as possible
• Students populate the bus from rear to front 

Buses will run their regular routes as mapped by the District 34 Transportation Manager. The District will not run late activity buses or extracurricular buses during Remote+ and Hybrid environments.

During remote and hybrid learning environments, visitors to the buildings will be greatly restricted. Those who must visit a school or the District office should call ahead to make an appointment, and all visitors must comply with distancing and PPE requirements.

Buildings have been re-designed to increase space to allow for physical distancing, to create barriers to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus: 

• Non-essential classroom furniture removed, including shared items
• Plexiglass shields installed in front offices and at health office desks, and in other areas as advised
• Classroom desks or tables are set up in row, at least six feet apart, and facing in one direction
• Students must remain in assigned seats throughout the day
• Dispensers for hand sanitizer (at least 60%) will be available in every room and in common areas

During remote learning, staff can have access to the buildings Monday through Friday, 7am to 5pm. There is no access on weekends. 

All District 34 staff, students/parents and visitors are required to self-certify that they have conducted a screening for COVID-19 symptoms before coming into a school or office building each day. These symptoms are new-onset that are not attributed to allergies or a pre-existing condition. The screening includes a check for: 

• Fever-temperature of 100.4 or higher
• New onset of moderate to severe headache
• Shortness of breath 
• New cough
• Sore throat
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Abdominal pain from unknown cause
• New congestion/runny nose
• New loss of sense of taste or smell
• Nausea
• Fatigue from unknown cause
• Muscle or body aches

Students

For any in-person school day, or in-person activity during remote learning, parents must log in to PowerSchool each school day, before leaving for school, to complete the self-certification tool for each student who is attending school in person. 

1. Login to District 34's PowerSchool web portal.
2. Click on the SUBMIT SELF-ASSESSMENT link on the home page.
3. Fill out the self-assessment and submit. 
4. If you have multiple students in District 34 attending in person on the same day, click on each student to fill out the self-assessment for them as well.

When students arrive at school, the school will have a check-in process to confirm completion of the self-certification. If it has not been completed, a staff member will conduct a temperature check and screening. If the screening indicates COVID-19 symptoms, the health office will immediately send the student to the infirmary and contact the parent or guardian to pick up the student.

Staff

Each employee must log into PowerSchool to complete a daily self-certification before entering the building. Kiosks are set up at designated entrances for staff to scan their IDs to confirm completion of the self-certification. 

Visitors

Visitors to District 34 are allowed by appointment only. The staff member who sets up the appointment with the visitor will share an online screening form, which must be completed prior to the time of the appointment. Hard copies of the form will be available at all buildings as well. 

If Symptoms Are Indicated

Students and staff who have one or more symptom must follow these procedures to attend any in-person opportunity: 

1. If they have an alternative diagnosis without a negative COVID-19 diagnostic test, they must stay home until symptoms have improved/resolved per return to school criteria for diagnosis (e.g., strep throat 24 hours after started antibiotics, 24 hours fever, vomiting, and/or diarrhea free). They will need a doctor's note for this alternative diagnosis and follow the doctor's direction. (If a child has allergies and has known congestion and we have a current doctor's note for that/those particular symptoms they can come to school with the note; they would check the symptom and then check the box indicating that they have a doctor's note).

2. If they have symptoms and do not have diagnostic testing or clinical evaluation, they have to stay home 10 days from the onset of symptoms, and for 24 hours without fever (without fever-reducing medication) and improvement of symptoms. To return to school there must be a note from the parent/guardian documenting that the ill student and/or household contacts do not have a fever (and have not taken fever-reducing medications) and symptoms have improved.  

If a person has symptoms, they can get a COVID-19 PCR test (not a rapid test). They can return by providing their negative test result.

All District 34 buildings will include signage to provide clear instructions and reminders about safety and health protocols. Signs will be in English, Korean, Mongolian and Spanish. Signage includes:

• Directional and distance markings on walls and floors, and outside of entrances to buildings
• Hygiene and face covering reminders at building entrances and throughout buildings
• Information about COVID-19 symptoms
• Instructions for drinking fountain/bottle filler usage
• In person restrictions on visitors to buildings

All staff are required to complete safety training before returning to the buildings. This training addresses: 

• Awareness
• Screening/Self Certification
• Personal Protective Equipment
• Physical Distancing
• Hand Washing and Cleaning
• Shared Spaces

Daytime custodial staff will: 

• Clean and disinfect hard surfaces once a day using EPA reg. 10324-141 approved disinfectants that kill coronavirus (exceptions include tablets, touch screens, keyboards and other electronic devices)
• Multiple times throughout the day, disinfect frequently touched fixtures in common areas, including:
  • Bannisters
  • Exterior and hallway door handles
  • Door and window hardware
• Clean bathrooms, including sinks, handles and door hardware
• Wipe down drinking fountain handles and clean fountains themselves
• Lunchroom cleaning:
  • Before lunch, set up and wipe down tables
  • Between lunch sessions, wipe down tables 
  • After the lunch period is complete tables are wiped down again and floors are swept and mopped, trash is taken out
• Be provided with extra HEPA filters for backpack vacuums and receive training to replace them per manufacturer recommendations
• Use backpack vacuum bags only once 

Teachers and other support staff in classrooms will be responsible for repeated disinfection of surfaces in classrooms throughout the day. Each classroom is equipped with disinfectant wipes approved by the EPA against COVID-19 and a spray bottle of pre-diluted disinfectant.

Nighttime custodial staff will: 

• Take out garbage, empty all trash and recycle bins and replace bags as needed, turning off lights in unoccupied areas
• Thoroughly wipe down and clean all occupied areas with EPA reg. 10324-141 approved disinfectants that kills coronavirus
• In restrooms:
  • Thoroughly wipe down and clean with EPA reg. 10324-141 approved disinfectants that kill coronavirus
  • Restock all toilet paper and paper towels
  • Mop and disinfect floors
• In offices, lounges and conference rooms:
  • Vacuum and mop floors
  • Clean all desktops and tables with with EPA reg. 10324-141 approved disinfectants that kill coronavirus
  • Wipe down all doors, door handles and light switches with with EPA reg. 10324-141 approved disinfectants that kill coronavirus
• Use the electrostatic sprayer as a second disinfecting step after the building is cleaned

A school might need to implement short-term closure procedures regardless of community spread if an infected person has been in a school building. In addition, CDC recommends cleaning and disinfecting the school building thoroughly by:

• Closing off areas used by the persons with COVID-19 and waiting as long as practical before beginning cleaning and disinfection to minimize potential for exposure to respiratory droplets
  • Open outside doors and windows to increase air circulation in the area
  • If possible, wait up to 24 hours before beginning cleaning and disinfection
• Cleaning and disinfecting all areas (e.g., offices, bathrooms, and common areas) used by the person(s) with COVID-19, focusing especially on frequently touched surfaces
  • Surfaces should be cleaned using soap (or a detergent) and water prior to disinfection
  • For disinfection, most common EPA-registered household disinfectants should be effective against the virus that causes COVID-19

In most instances, a single case of COVID-19 in a school would not warrant closing the entire school. Community spread and how much contact the person with COVID-19 had with others, as well as when such contact took place, need to be considered. These variables should also be considered when determining how long a school, or part of the school, stays closed. Administrators should work with local health officials to determine if temporarily closing the school building is necessary.

Visitors to the office are allowed by appointment only and are limited to essential functions (custodial, delivery and supervisors). 

• Masks and hand washing are required before entering all food service work spaces
• Physical distancing is required
• Staff are not allowed to congregate in break rooms, training or conference rooms
• Sanitize all touch surfaces at start and end of day 
• The Director of Food Service will monitor staff absentee rates and participation rates at schools and reassign staff locations as needed

District 34 will implement National School Lunch Program requirements for meal distribution for the 2020-2021 school year.  During remote learning periods, the food service department will offer contactless, drive-through pickup of meals, which will be available only for students enrolled in District 34. Parents will be asked who they are picking up meals for.

Students on paid or reduced-price status will be able to purchase meal boxes and should make sure there are enough funds in the account. 

Staff distributing meals will wear masks and adhere to distancing requirements. When picking up, parents are asked to remain in their cars and wear masks when windows are down to communicate with staff. 

The food service department will make breakfast and lunch available for students when schools are open for in-person learning. A special cycle menu will be offered. Meals will be “grab and go” style; all meal components, utensils and condiments  will be included in a bag.   Prepayments are required and can be made online through E-funds for Schools (which also is accessible through PowerSchool). Parents also can mail checks to the school office or placed in drop boxes at the schools. 

For breakfast, meal pick up stations will be set up near bus entrances. Students will eat breakfast in classrooms. Teachers will monitor hand washing before and after the students eat.

In some cases, lunches will be delivered to service locations throughout the school; in others, cafeterias will be open for point-of-sale purchase and pick up. 

Many spaces of the schools, including classrooms, cafeterias and other common areas, will be used during lunch time in order to maintain a physical distance of 6 feet between all students. Outside areas will be used whenever possible. Teachers will monitor hand washing before and after the students eat. Students will clean their area before eating; those who need it will receive assistance in cleaning.

There will be designated areas in each building for allergies. Adults will clean the area before and after eating. 

For purchase and pickup in cafeteria, with contactless point-of-sale procedures:

• Students in grades 1-5 receive their sanitized lunch card from their teacher and drop the lunch card into a container as they receive their lunch. Cashier will scan cards, sanitize cards and return to the classroom in a closed container.  Students will have ID cards attached to their desk.  They will bring their ID to the service area, scan the card, receive lunch, and place the card back in the pocket on their desk.
• Middle school students keep their lunch card and scan at point of service. Pin pad will be available if needed and used by the cashier only. 
• Physical distancing is required for students waiting in the service line; floor decals will provide guidance
• Contactless hand sanitizer will be available at start of all service lines

For delivery within the school: 

• Teachers will take a lunch count and enter tallied lunch order in PowerSchool under “PowerLunch Class Counts” no later than 9:00am each morning
• Meals will be packed by classroom and delivered to the service location

As students will need to take off their masks to eat, education and signage will be provided to instruct and remind students about proper mask removal, storage and placement. Paper bags will be provided to students for mask storage.