March 10, 2020
Dear Parents,
The health and safety of our students and staff is our top priority. In partnership with the Sonoma County Department of Health and the Centers for Disease Control, the district is working to ensure our school is safe for students and staff.
Based on what we’ve seen in affected countries, COVID-19 can cause mild to severe respiratory illness and children seem to be less likely to become ill. The virus appears to be transmitted through person-to-person contact and health authorities expect more cases may occur in California and the United States. Practicing basic hygiene such as washing your hands regularly with soap is the best way to stop the transmission of the virus. Our custodial team has implemented additional sanitization cleaning on campus and we continue to be mindful of best practices when it comes to good hygiene protocols with our students.
As testing of COVID-19 becomes more widely available, the CDC anticipates seeing increased new cases in the coming days and weeks. Sonoma County Office of Ed along with state and federal authorities may issue new guidance, and we will keep you updated on changes and its impact on our school.
One of the situations unfolding across our nation resulting from COVID-19 includes school closures. AVS is not considering a school closure at this time, however, in the event the CDC or Sonoma County Public Health deem our campus to be impacted by COVID-19 we would most likely be forced into a 14-day school quarantine closure.
What would a COVID-19 AVS School Closure look like?
At this time our staff is thinking through the steps and planning of how best to deliver “distant learning” to our students in the result of a forced closure. This would include accessing technology from home, utilizing on-line access to AVS approved curriculum software platforms, reading and writing activities, student learning paper packets, and e-communication. Our teachers and staff are the best in the county and I am certain that we would do all we can to provide continuous learning opportunities for our students throughout such an event. It is unfortunate that we even need to start considering such plans, but as we continue to see the COVID-19 situation evolving, it is becoming more and more evident the challenges many school communities are facing centered around a forced COVID-19 school closure.
Mr. Reno