Health and Safety Plan
Updated August 2024
Anyone who has symptoms of infectious illness must stay home. Symptoms can include fever, chills, sore throat, cough, difficulty breathing, fatigue, body aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea. Children who develop symptoms at school will be sent home and given COVID test kits to take with them. Students who have been sick are asked to test before returning to school.
Students who test positive for COVID-19 or are sick with other infectious illnesses such as flu may return to school when all of the following are true:
- They are fever-free for a full 24 hours without medication.
- Symptoms are improving.
- They wear a mask indoors for 5 days upon returning.
Students who are exposed to COVID or other infectious illnesses such as flu in their household may attend school if they have no symptoms and wear a mask indoors for 5 days from the date of last exposure.
As always, families with a sick child should work with the school about a return to school plan. This policy also applies to staff and their children who attend Synergy School.
The wearing of masks is optional and a family’s choice. No one will be required to remove their mask and a safe space will be maintained for those who choose to wear one. Please communicate clearly with your children about whether you want them to wear a mask at school; teachers should not be put in a position to enforce a family’s wishes. Please note that the California Department of Public Health strongly recommends masking indoors during periods of high community spread. There may also be times when the school will ask individuals to wear masks indoors in specific and limited circumstances.
Ventilation is one of the key ways to reduce the transmission of COVID-19. The school will maximize the use of windows, exterior doors to yards, interior doors to the hallway, and the ventilation system to maximize intake of fresh air and minimize recirculated air. When windows and doors must remain closed because of poor air quality as in the case of wildfires, each classroom and office will use portable air purifiers with HEPA-filters.
The school will follow good hygiene practices by teaching, reminding, and promoting handwashing throughout the day, especially before and after eating, after using the rest room, and after handling garbage, or removing gloves.