Otter News-Columbia City Elementary

Mrs. Haase will be on leave for the month of November. Please feel free to contact our substitute secretary, Mrs. Hale at sandyh@sthelens.k12.or.us

Monday, November 8th

• Welcome Back to Campus-Mrs. Vanaman's Kindergarten!

Wednesday, November 10th

• Early Release-End of Day 1:30

Thursday, November 11th

• Veteran's Day-No School

Friday, November 12th

• Teacher Work Day-No School

Planning Ahead

November 22nd-Evening Parent/Teacher Conferences

November 23rd-Daytime Parent/Teacher Conferences

November 24th-26th-Thanksgiving Vacation

Bell Studios will be offering make-up and picture retakes on Friday, November 19th. Please contact them directly for questions about ordering.

bellstudios@bellimaging.com

503-556-5232

In our efforts to keep students in school and healthy, we will be starting to be more diligent about requiring students with Covid symptoms to quarantine.

According to the Oregon Department of Education, school administrators are required to exclude students and staff whom they have reason to suspect have been exposed to Covid-19. Students experiencing symptoms below are required to remain home for the amount of time noted.

• Fever of 100.4F or higher (10 days)
• Chills (10 days)
• New or worsening cough (10 days)
• New or worsening shortness of breath or difficulty breathing (10 days)
• New loss of taste/smell (10 days)
• Positive COVID-19 Test or awaiting results of COVID-19 Test (10 days from results)
• The student is in close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19 (10 days).
• Vomiting and/or diarrhea (48 hours after the last episode)
• Rash (TBD)

Students returning from one of these illnesses will need to bring a note to school stating when the condition ended and confirming that the child is now well enough for school. Information about a positive or negative Covid test would be helpful as well.

The St. Helens School District joins many other districts across the state in providing free weekly COVID-19 testing for K-5 students during the 2021-2022 school year. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has contracted with OHSU to provide these tests to participating schools in Oregon.

While this program is not mandatory, we encourage parents to sign their student(s) up for testing as regular testing helps us stop the spread of COVID-19 and keep our schools open for in-person instruction. To have your child participate in the first round of enrollment, BOTH consent forms (OHSU & OHA) will need to be returned to your student’s school by Friday, November 12, 2021.

Please see the Q&A section below to help answer any questions you may have about the program.

WHY SHOULD I SIGN UP MY CHILD FOR WEEKLY COVID TESTS?

• Keeps our schools open for in-person learning

• Helps us detect COVID cases early, so we can stop an outbreak before it happens

• Gives you peace of mind knowing whether or not your child has COVID

• Prevents a sick child from unknowingly spreading COVID to loved ones.

WHAT ARE THE COVID-19 TESTS LIKE?

• The tests are quick and painless. All that is needed is a sample of your child’s spit (saliva).

• Schools will ask students to collect their spit at home and bring it to school.

• Schools will provide students with a collection kit with instructions on how to collect the spit sample and where to turn it in.

WHAT HAPPENS ONCE I SEND THE SPIT SAMPLE BACK TO THE SCHOOL?

• OHSU will collect the samples from your school.

• After the lab gets the sample, they will send you a secure email with the test results within 24 - 48 hours.

• If your child’s test results come back as unknown or as having COVID-19, you will receive a call from a nurse from OHSU’s COVID hotline.

HOW MANY TIMES CAN I GET MY CHILD TESTED?

• Your child can get tested every week on your school’s collection day.

• Your school will give you more testing kits as you need them.

WILL MY CHILD’S INFORMATION BE KEPT PRIVATE?

• We will never share your child’s information or COVID status with anyone other than public health officials.

• The OHA or the local health authority will call you if you have a positive result to start contact tracing. While your school will not get your child’s results from OHSU, it might get them from the OHA or local health authority.

• OHSU will not share test results with your school.

HOW WILL MY CHILD’S SCHOOL BE NOTIFIED OF POSITIVE RESULTS?

• Families are the first ones to receive their child’s results.

• OHSU will not share test results with your school. In order to keep accurate records, we are asking that families share this information with your student’s school upon receiving your child’s results.

WHAT IF I NO LONGER WANT MY CHILD TO BE TESTED?

If you change your mind, just let our nursing services know that you no longer want to be part of the program.

HOW DO I SIGN UP MY CHILD FOR WEEKLY COVID TESTING?

If you would like to sign your student up for free weekly COVID-19 testing, please complete the attached forms and have your child bring them back to school and give them to their teacher. Please complete one form per child.

If you have specific questions about this program, please contact OHSU at 833-376-1027, 8:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m., Monday - Friday.

Attachments: OHSU & OHA Consent Forms

Please contact the school before 8:30 am if your child will be absent or late.

Elementary School Daily Schedule-In Person

(M, T, Th, F)

8:10 am Students may arrive at school.

(There is no supervision of students prior to 8:10. Please do not arrive before that time.)

Students will enter the school building at assigned doors, and go directly to class.

Family Drop-off (front of the building)

K-3rd Students-Instructional Wing doors

4th-5th Students-Front Doors

Bus Riders & Preschool

Lower doors-1st Street

Preschool Families-Please park beyond the bus loading and unloading areas

Breakfast and Lunch will be offered to all students free of charge in the classroom.

8:30 am School starts and students are tardy after this time.

3:00 pm Students are dismissed.

3:20 pm Students still waiting for pickup will be brought to the office.

After-school supervision is concluded.

Wednesday Early Release

1:30 Students are dismissed.

1:50 Students still waiting for pickup will be brought to the office.

After-school supervision is concluded.

Questions or concerns related to school bus services should be directed to Durham School Services staff directly at 503-397-9072

Monday-Thursday

Office Hours: 8 am - 4 pm

Please feel free to contact me any time.

Email: Jenniferv@sthelens.k12.or.us
Phone: 503.366-7550