BROCKETT BULLETIN

We are doing a special edition of the Brockett Bulletin to share the latest guidance from the Oregon Department of Education (ODE). The goal of McMinnville School District and ODE is to keep schools operating in person and our extracurricular activities in place. However, for this to happen, the guidance emphasizes the importance of layered mitigation strategies to minimize the impact of the fast-moving omicron variant.

We will need the help of the entire school community and you can help by doing the following:

• Continue to encourage your child to properly wear their masks over their nose and mouth, wash their hands frequently, and socially distance themselves from non-household members.

• Keep your students home and get them tested if they are experiencing symptoms that may be COVID-19. Students that begin to show symptoms at home can schedule a test at our Family Resource Center by calling 503.565.4225. This is a rapid test and results will be shared 15 minutes after testing. If your child becomes symptomatic at school, they can be tested onsite with parental consent. (If you have not already filed a consent form, please contact your child’s school.)

• Consider opting into the district’s weekly screening program. You would receive a weekly testing kit for your child to test at home. Find out how to sign up here.

• We continue to encourage families to receive both vaccinations and booster shots. This week, the FDA authorized booster shots for children ages 12-15 as well as for younger children who are immunocompromised. For information about vaccine clinics here in Yamhill County, please click here.

For students who are exposed outside school or test positive, here is a quarantine option and isolation period, as well as information to ensure your child can continue with their academic success:

Test to Stay program

Students that are exposed to a COVID positive person on a school campus, while wearing a mask, will be given a rapid test on the school site or at the Family Resource Center at 1500 NE Baker Street. If the test comes back negative your child will be allowed to remain in school. Find out more here.

7-day quarantine for exposed students

Students that are exposed to a COVID positive person outside of school can shorten their 10-day quarantine period by testing negative with a rapid test on day 7 at the Family Resource Center.

10-day isolation for students that test positive (or are considered presumptive)

As of today, students who test positive for COVID will be required to isolate for 10 days. (Note: Although the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has reduced the number of days a COVID positive person must isolate, ODE has directed schools to continue with the 10-day isolation period for now. ODE is working with the Oregon Health Authority to determine how the CDC’s new guidance will impact K-12 schools in Oregon. Until then, we will continue to follow the current ODE guidance.)

There was some confusion about the message that was sent out on Sunday. I do apologize and want to clarify the process for students not attending school due to COVID-19 illness/symptoms and/or direct exposure if not vaccinated.

If your child is symptomatic, we encourage you to get your child tested. This can be done at any testing location or you can schedule a test at the district’s Family Resource Center at 503.565.4225. This is a 15-minute rapid test and results will be shared with you onsite.

• If your child is positive, the school will be notified and they will provide your child with remote learning opportunities to allow your child to maintain their positive attendance.

• If you choose not to get your child tested, you can contact the school for any work they miss while absent. Please note that most assignments can be accessed through Google Classroom so packets are not being provided.

• If your child is NOT vaccinated and was directly exposed to a COVID positive person, call the school and they will provide your child with remote learning opportunities to allow your child to maintain their positive attendance.

Again, we appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through the challenges of the ongoing pandemic.

Based on the emerging experience of other states and school districts, we expect rapid transmission of the omicron variant in indoor settings when people do not follow the safety strategies.

McMinnville School District wants to do all we can to ensure we can maintain our full sports program and allow students to participate in extracurricular activities, but we MUST do everything we can to ensure the safety of our students, staff and community.

You can help us maintain our programs by doing the following:

• Follow all mask guidelines, ensuring you and all persons in your party are properly wearing their mask over their nose and mouth for the duration of the event.

• Stay home if you are not feeling well or have been exposed to a person with COVID.

• Follow the social distancing requirements of six feet from any non-household person.

Please note that we cannot make exceptions to these requirements, and if at any time during an event you are not compliant we will ask you to leave the premises.

We want to continue to have all the events/sports students enjoy, but if we cannot maintain the safety measures for our students and staff at all times, we will be forced to eliminate spectator participation or to pause all extracurricular activities completely.

I understand that everyone is ready to move past the pandemic, but if the current modeling is accurate, the omicron surge may be a few weeks at most. For now, I encourage you to continue to work with us to keep our schools open because we all know that our students need to be in school every day to receive the most valuable educational experience.

Email: info@msd.k12.or.us
Website: www.msd.k12.or.us
Location: 800 Northeast Lafayette Avenue, McMinnville, OR, USA
Phone: 503.565.4000
Facebook: facebook.com/McMinnvilleSchoolDistrict
Twitter: @McMSchools