https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html

COVID 19 Diagnosis-

Persons with COVID-19 who have symptoms may discontinue isolation under the following conditions:

• At least 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared: and
• 24 hours with no fever without the use of fever-reducing medication; and
• COVID-19 symptoms have improved (for example, cough, shortness of breath)

Persons who tested Positive with No Symptoms-

·         If you continue to have no symptoms, you can be with others after 10 days have passed since test.

Persons who had close contact with someone who tested Positive with COVID-19

·         Close contact is determined by one of the following

-You were within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes in a 24-hour period from 48 hours before the person began feeling sick or from test date

-You provided care at home to someone who is sick with COVID-19

-You had direct physical contact with the person (hugged or kissed them)

-You shared eating or drinking utensils

-They sneezed, coughed, or somehow got respiratory droplets on you

·         Anyone who has had close contact with someone with COVID-19 should stay home for 10 days after their last exposure to that person.

·         However, anyone who has had close contact with someone with COVID-19 and who: developed COVID-19 illness within the previous 3 months and has recovered and remains without COVID-19 symptoms (for example, cough, shortness of breath) or someone who is fully vaccinated and does not show symptoms does not need to quarantine.

• Someone who has been fully vaccinated and shows no symptoms of COVID-19. However, fully vaccinated people should get tested 3-5 days after their exposure, even they don’t have symptoms and wear a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until their test result is negative.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-sick/end-home-isolation.html

Note from Mr. Milford as we begin the 2021-2022 school year: 

As we begin this year, I want to attempt to take some of the mysteries out of the decision-making process we use to determine our best path to take when working through COVID. It is easy, with all the emotion around this issue to pick one piece, segregate it out, and focus on it while ignoring the rest.  However, in Algebra classes, we work with Multivariable Linear Equations, that is the best comparable I have to this situation.  This may give some of you chills because you did not like Algebra in school, but do you remember questions like this one: 

Considering the system of linear equations below: What is the best positive fraction that will result in a system of equations with no solution if the numerator is 28? 

9x – 14y = -3 

2x – ay = -6 

Have you broken out in a cold sweat yet?  Remember when we asked our math teacher, “When are we going to use this in real life?”  Well, we are using it now.  Some of the variables we are watching are the numbers that we can pull off the websites we have access to, our local hospitals, as well as how other schools are doing tied to their unique protocols.   We also look at the data points internally, the behaviors of our students, the learning efficacy we see in the classrooms in this environment, and the protocols we are directed to follow by the CDC and the local Department of Health.  For example, the CDC allows us to use a 3-foot perimeter for contact tracing if all in the room are masked, but if anyone in the room is unmasked, we must return to 6 feet.  Therefore, once we allow optional masking, the potential for quarantine at least doubles because the distance we use to contact trace doubles.  This is a variable that directly impacts how many students will quarantine from a known case in the classroom.  In my mind, the 3/6-foot contact tracing perimeter is one of the two main variables in the masking decision.  

The second main variable is simply the number of cases in the community.  It cannot be reasonably disputed that a higher number of cases in the community directly increases the risk of having a positive case on campus.  There is not, however, a threshold number we are looking for in the cn County positivity rate was close to 10%.  So, we know that in last year’s environment we could run the school effectively at those levels.  However, we have a more restrictive virtual option, the Delta variant's differing virility, the hospitals are close to capacity, and our understanding of the impacts of vaccines is slowly increasing....all of these are variables in the equation.  Therefore, we are specifically watching the number of cases in the community in figuring that into our equation.  There is much speculation on how the college students will impact this number and how returning to in-person PK-12 schools will impact it as well.  However, we have been monitoring this now for 18 months and have a good feel of how breaks and returning to school impact our Maclay community. 

We will continue to proactively monitor the situation and because of our status as an Independent School, unfettered by many of the restrictions and bureaucracy of other schools, we will be nimble and more responsive than others in our area.  Thank you all for your patience and trust as we move through this time together.