Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation recently issued the following announcement.
Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation (MVCSC) holds our student and staff health and safety as our number one priority. The Greenfield Daily Reporter newspaper has reported a jail employee in Hancock County has been diagnosed with the coronavirus (COVID-19). There are currently no cases of COVID-19 in any MVCSC school.
MVCSC is communicating regularly with the Hancock County Health Department, as well as the Indiana State Health Department and is following their guidance. MVCSC has been working diligently to plan ahead and is closely monitoring the Indiana State Department of Health and the Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) websites for reliable updates and guidance.
With the recent COVID-19 cases in Indiana, MVCSC is taking additional health, cleaning, and closure precautions to keep students and staff healthy.
After Governor Holcomb's statement on 3/12/20, we are implementing the following actions:
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Here are some of the extra measures that a wide variety of MVCSC staff (teachers, custodians, bus drivers, instructional assistants, health room assistants, etc.) are taking to maintain a healthy educational environment throughout this period of concern:
- Continually teaching good hygiene to students - Parents are encouraged to reinforce:
- Wash hands with soap for 20 seconds
- Cover coughs and sneezes with tissues or coughing into elbow
- Avoid touching eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands
- Instead of shaking hands or high fives, knuckle-bump or elbow-bump
- Remain at home if there are any symptoms of feeling sick
- Hand sanitizer in every room as supplies allow
- Disinfecting/sterilizing bus seats and high-touch objects on buses
- Bus drivers have been allowed over-time to thoroughly clean their buses
- Continuing to disinfect/sterilize food prep areas and cafeterias
- Cafeteria staff have been allowed over-time for any extra cleaning needed
- Staff will continue to disinfect/sterilize high-touch areas daily such as doorknobs, light switches, desks/tables, water fountains, etc.
- MVCSC Health Services has a plan to help screen and identify students with possible virus symptoms
- Technology staff is cleaning the shared Chromebooks, Lobby Guard, and computer labs. To clean your student’s Chromebook, use alcohol-based wipes without bleach.
What about Mt. Vernon families who are traveling?
MVCSC is expecting families that are traveling to review the CDC website’s watch list and follow their travel advice. On their website, the CDC shares that the risk of infection on an airplane is low. MVCSC requires that all staff and students traveling on a cruise or to a CDC Designated "Widespread Sustained" (level 3) country to self-report to the school principal via email, and self-quarantine themselves per CDC’s recommendation.
MVHS Principal - casey.dodd@mvcsc.k12.in.us
MVMS Principal - benjamin.williams@mvcsc.k12.in.us
FES Principal - stacy.muffler@mvcsc.k12.in.us
MCE Principal - alissa.lockwood@mvcsc.k12.in.us
MES Principal - stephanie.miller@mvcsc.k12.in.us
Preschool Coordinator - elizabeth.flynn@mvcsc.k12.in.us
What is our attendance policy during this time?
Students and staff with a principal verification for the self-quarantine will be held harmless for their attendance. Those who choose to stay home without a principal’s verification for the absence will be subject to the regular attendance policy. The principal will approve/verify a self-quarantine absence for those traveling to/from a CDC designated "Widespread Sustained" (level 3) country, or those who come back from a cruise.
What happens if the Hancock County Health Department advises MVCSC to close schools due to a verified COVID-19 infection?
MVCSC will follow the Health Department’s guidance and we will implement additional eLearning days as needed. Please remember, should this situation arise, we are prohibited from sharing health information about students or staff. Please do not engage in speculation, online or in person, about neighbors or classmates. In the event of a COVID-19 diagnosis in our district after students return to school, we will inform our parents and staff immediately. Because of privacy laws, MVCSC has been legally advised not to share any information, which includes the name of the school(s) that had the diagnosis.
What about extracurricular activities?
At this time, we are canceling all activities through April 10 and are monitoring developments daily, if not hourly.
How should I talk to my children about COVID-19?
There are many resources that are available to help guide your discussion. Here is a guide from the National Association of School Psychologists.
This is a very fluid situation, and we will continue to communicate with our families and update our website page regularly. The leaders at MVCSC are discussing and preparing for a variety of situations that may or may not arise. Some of the considerations being discussed are extracurricular activities, food service, special education services, and of course providing quality instruction/learning environment through eLearning.
This is an unusual situation, but we are confident that working together will help to keep our staff and students healthy. Thank you for your partnership and support.
Original source can be found here.
Source: Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation
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