During the school day, send COVID-19 test results to your school's health office.

After hours and on weekends, send results to District 34’s district-wide contact tracing coordinator Bernadette Godley, bgodley@glenview34.org, 773-596-4971.

District 34 will continue to promote healthy habits among staff, students and families. Each person must take personal responsibility to practice those habits, which include: 

• Stay home when you are sick or show any symptoms of COVID-19
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick
• Follow proper hand hygiene. Wash with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds:
  • Before eating food
  • After using the toilet
  • After blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing
  • After touching garbage
• If you don't have soap, use hand sanitizer (60-95% alcohol based)
• Cover your cough or sneeze into your elbow or a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe daily (ex: playground equipment, door handles, sink handles, drinking fountains, toys, desks)
• Ensure all vaccines are up-to-date 
• Use non-contact methods of greeting

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
• New loss of sense of taste or smell
• Fatigue from unknown cause
• Muscle or body aches

It also asks about contact with those who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, and about non-essential travel, as recommended by the Cook County Department of Public Health.  

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 this online screening form, which must be completed and signed by the visitor and brought to the appointment. Hard copies of the form will be available at all buildings as well. 

If Symptoms Are Indicated

Staff and students who have one or more symptoms, as well as any sibling within a household of a person exhibiting symptoms, must follow these procedures to attend any in-person opportunity: 

1. If they have an alternative diagnosis without a negative COVID-19 PCR 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 stating no clinical suspicion on COVID-19 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. 

3. 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. 

On February 4, the Cook County Department of Public Health updated their travel guidance. The CCDPH website reads:

Anyone traveling from a state on the Orange list on this webpage is directed to obtain a negative COVID-19 test result no more than 72 hours prior to arrival in suburban Cook County or quarantine for a 10-day period (or for the duration of their time in suburban Cook County, whichever is shorter).

CCDPH indicated that they will have more information about spring break travel guidance for schools by February 19. As we await further information from public health officials, we are updating our travel guidance to include a 10-day quarantine after domestic travel outside of Illinois. (No quarantine is required for travel within the state.) 

In some situations, you will be able to provide a negative COVID test (PCR test only) to reduce the length of the quarantine: 

• Option for an extended domestic trip: Take a COVID test no more than 72 hours before you return to Cook County. You must then follow strict masking, social distancing and avoidance of in-person gatherings after testing. 
• Option for any domestic trip: If you are taking a short trip, or are not able to meet the testing and post-testing requirements on a longer trip, you can take a COVID test after you arrive home. You then need to quarantine until you receive a negative test result.
• Option for international travel: Take a COVID test 3-5 days after you arrive home. You then need to quarantine for 7 days after your return (even if you receive your negative test result before the 7 days are up).

Those who have had COVID-19 do not have to quarantine after travel (for 90 days after their COVID19 diagnosis). You will see changes in the daily self-assessment beginning on Monday. 

In all cases, those who have traveled must continue to: 

• Monitor for symptoms for 14 days of returning from travel
• Practice distancing and mask wearing

FAQ: Is the District planning to take an Adaptive Pause after Spring Break? 

The District can't make any decisions about Spring Break at this time, as we have no idea what the COVID-19 case rates might be in March, or how health agency guidance might change. In general, though, we do not expect to take an Adaptive Pause to accommodate post-travel quarantine. We've worked hard to bring students back for in-person learning and our objective is to continue it. We hope the community will make decisions that allow us to do so.

Teachers and staff should contact health services employee(s) prior to sending a student to the infirmary or health office if they are uncertain or need guidance about student care.

Staff or students who develop COVID-19 symptoms during the day will be sent home. They will be advised to contact their physician for further guidance, or to contact the Cook County Department of Public Health at 708-633-4000 or the IDPH COVID-19 hotline at 1-800-889-3931 to determine if testing is warranted. 

They will be required to meet the District’s return-to-school criteria.

Siblings of students who develop COVID-19 symptoms also will be sent home.

Student Pick Up from Infirmary

Parents or guardians of a symptomatic student will be notified immediately of their child’s status and will be asked to pick up the student as soon as possible (no longer than 45 minutes of a school nurse phone call). If the student's condition worsens before the arrival of a parent, guardian or emergency contact, 911 may be called. If a parent cannot pick up in a timely manner, other pickup arrangements must be made by the parent or guardian. 

Students should obtain a school nurse pass as hall pass to visit the health office. Student may independently visit the health office for variety of individualized needs, so long as none of the following symptoms are present:

• Confusion, disorientation, or "doesn't seem to be themself”
• Decreased level of consciousness
• Shortness of breath/respiratory distress
• Dizziness/Lightheadedness
• Spinal cord or head injury, complaining of neck pain (DO NOT MOVE POSITION)
• Vision impairment
• Diabetic "lows"
• Hemodynamic compromise (loss of blood)
• Individualized triage judgement call of faculty/staff or based off reported condition as directed by school nurse

Students need to stay in place for in-person evaluation if they display any of those conditions. If it is an emergency, staff should call 911 immediately.

In order to prevent potential exposure to infectious diseases, promote isolation, and decrease office congestion students should NOT visit the Health Office with the common situations, including:

• Paper cuts, small abrasions, picked scabs. Teacher or staff should  have students wash their hands and self apply a bandage if needed.
• Localized bug bite. If the student has no allergy history and a rash or redness has not spread over large area of skin (not larger than a pencil eraser), the student should apply cool paper towel to area to help prevent scratching
• Anxiety, stress or psychosocial issues. If the condition is not affecting breathing or medical health, the teacher or staff should try offering a snack or other redirection, and refer to appropriate student services staff members in the building for collaboration.

When health office staff, school administrators or any other staff member is informed of a COVID-19 positive case, the next step is to update the health services coordinator/District Nurse. Local health officials will help identify those individuals and will collaborate on next steps. To ensure proper notification and procedures are followed, designated staff members at each school and in the District office have taken contact tracing training and received certifications. 

The Cook County Health Department will need the following information:

• Name of student/staff
• DOB
• Phone number
• Parent/guardian information
• Last day of school attendance
• If they are symptomatic then the day they began to feel ill
• Date of test
• Health provider
• Testing site, if appropriate

Close contact is  anyone who was “within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period, starting from 2 days before illness onset." Under the new CDC definition, for example, an individual exposed to COVID-19 for only 5 minutes but three different times within a 24-hour period (perhaps spanning two school days) now falls under the definition of a “close contact.”

Employee Responsibilities

If you have tested positive or have been confirmed to have COVID-19:

• Do not report to work or enter any school or District facilities.
• Notify your immediate supervisor of the positive test and your need to take leave.
• Report leave in the Absence Management System.  If eligible, report your leave as COVID-19 Self in the Absence Management System.  If you have exhausted your COVID-19 leave or are not eligible for COVID-19 leave, report other applicable leave.
• If using COVID-19 Leave, provide the following documentation to Human Resources by completing the Emergency Paid Sick Leave Form.

  • Your name;

  • The date(s) for which you request leave;

  • The reason for leave

  • A statement that you are unable to work because of the above reason.

• Employees who have tested positive for COVID-19 or who have not been tested but were directed to care for themselves at home may return to work under the following conditions (per CDC guidance):

  • At least 24 hours) have passed since recovery defined as resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and
  • Symptoms have improved; and,
  • At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared 

Supervisor/Principal Responsibilities

• Notify Health Services Coordinator that you have an employee who has tested positive for COVID-19.

• Assist the employee in completing steps to access COVID-19 leave including providing HR with the necessary documentation.

• Assist Health Services Coordinator and Cook County Department of Public Health with Contact Tracing and investigation to determine if the employee contracted COVID-19 in the workplace as needed.    

• Communication to staff, students, and parents, as applicable, of the possible exposure to COVID-19 while maintaining confidentiality as required by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) when directed by the Cook County Department of Public Health.

District Responsibilities

• Health Services Coordinator will contact the Cook County  Department of Public Health  and Human Resources to notify them of employee testing positive for COVID-19 and to determine an appropriate course of action based on the specific situation.

• District staff, in collaboration with building principal/supervisor, will communicate with staff, students and parents, as applicable, of the possible exposure to COVID-19 while maintaining confidentiality as required by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) when directed by the Cook County Department of Public Health. 

• Health Services Coordinator, in collaboration with Supervisor/Principal, will assist Cook County  Department of  Public Health with Contact Tracing and investigation to determine if the employee contracted COVID-19 in the workplace as needed  .

• HR will assist the employee in completing steps to access COVID-19 leave if eligible.

• HR will collect necessary documentation as required under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.

• In collaboration with Supervisor/Principal, implement Pandemic Operation Plan For Confirmed Case In School in collaboration with Cook County Department of  Public Health Department. 

Stay home until symptoms have improved/resolved. A student or staff member can return if:

• At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared 
• 24 hours have passed with no fever (without fever-reducing medication;
• There has been an improvement of symptoms.

After the 10-day exclusion, a note from parent/guardian documenting that the ill student and/or household contacts are afebrile without fever-reducing medication and symptoms have improved. 

A student or staff member can return if:

• At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared
• At least 24 hours have passed with no fever (without fever-reducing medication)
• There has been an improvement of symptoms; 

Release from isolation letter provided by the parent/guardian or staff person, notification via phone, secure email or fax from the local health department to the school. 

Stay home until symptoms have improved/resolved.

Follow your medical provider's recommended treatment

If you are a close contact to a confirmed case, documentation of a negative RT-PCR COVID-19 test result is needed. 

In other cases, a negative RT-PCR, rapid molecular (raid PCR) or negative antigen test is acceptable.

Negative COVID-19 tests are valid only for the date on which they are collected. Specimens collected 48hrs prior to -after to -or while symptom onset are present are acceptable for determining school exclusion status.

Individuals who tested COVID-19 positive within the past three months by PCR or antigen test should not have a suspicion of COVID-19 reinfection, and therefore, do not need to be excluded, isolated, or quarantined for a period of three months prior to the onset date or specimen collection date, if asymptomatic. 

A student or staff member can return:

• 10 days after test was taken
• If fever develops must be  fever free for at least 24 hours  (without fever-reducing medication)
• If symptoms develop, there must be an improvement of symptoms

Release from isolation will be provided by the local health department to the school.

A close contact is anyone (with or without a face covering) who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period, starting from 2 days before illness onset. Under the new CDC definition, for example, an individual exposed to COVID-19 for only 5 minutes but three different times within a 24-hour period (perhaps spanning two school days) now falls under the definition of a “close contact.”

Unless fully vaccinated, stay home for 10 calendar days after last exposure to the COVID-19 case.

If COVID-19 illness develops, use the 10-day isolation period guidance. Testing is recommended. Anyone who has had close contact with someone with COVID-19 who developed COVID-19 illness within the previous three months and has recovered and remains without COVID-19 symptoms (for example, cough or shortness of breath) does not need to stay home.

A student or staff member can return:

• After 24 hours on antibiotics for variety of bacterial causes
• After 24 hours since last episode of active vomiting or diarrhea
• With a medical physician’s note of clearance for various specific medical conditions (e.g., medically fragile and immunocompromised students) or a negative COVID-19 test result.