Aberdeen Schools

At Robert Gray Elementary School, the kindergartners are leaping into learning!

Students in the Aberdeen School District are able to access many health and wellness activities free of charge at the YMCA of Grays Harbor this year. In addition, the district partners with the Y on the 21st Century After School Program. All are encouraged to learn more about these activities by contacting the Y or your school's After School site coordinator.

See the full flyer from the Y on the district website. (pdf)

Our district staff has been working very hard since school opened to maintain a safe learning environment. It's an enormous task as we are seeing an increase in the numbers of positive cases.

You may have read that our football team had a positive test and the decision was made not to compete on Friday. In addition, McDermoth Elementary has quarantined two classrooms. The Health Department closes a class when there are two confirmed cases of COVID.

We need your help managing this crisis. There are three critical pieces of information for our families to keep in mind:

1. The district cannot reveal who in a class tested positive due to medical privacy. If you hear of a student who is quarantining, try not to speculate whether the student is ill or a close contact of a classmate.
   
   
2. If you hear of a case at your student's school but you did not get a phone call, then your student was not a close contact and may continue to come to school.
   
   
3. All of our schools have experienced COVID, so please keep a close eye on your student for any symptoms and urge them to follow the health and safety protocols. Do not send them to school if they have any symptoms. Better to be safe for a day than possibly expose others.

Maintaining proper distance and proper mask wearing at school will play a large role in our ability to manage the level of transmission.

There are student and staff absences at all of our schools due to COVID, and while the challenge is "inordinate," Superintendent Alicia Henderson said, "Our focus continues to be filling absences as needed while ensuring that we have enough staff to safely operate our schools. Everyone is doing their part and I know all of the hard work is appreciated by our community."

More information about health and safety protocols can be found on the website where the state Department of Health Rules for K-12 Schools are posted.

If you're a little confused about close contacts, join the club! The definition continues to be refined during this period of high transmission. As of Sept. 16, the Health Department defined close contact as follows:

• For students, a "close contact" is now defined as an individual being within 3 feet of someone who has tested positive with COVID for more than 15 minutes during the day in the classroom, or 6 feet out of the classroom (with or without masks).
• No changes for adults - still 6 feet.

The answer to that question changed this week. There is now a test-to-return option.

As of Thursday, students who are identified as close contacts must quarantine for 14 days as directed by the Grays Harbor Health Department.

However, students may come back to school after the 7th day with a negative result on a PCR test, which can be taken on Day 5. That is, students may return on Day 8 with a negative test. This only applies to a return to the classroom. Extra-curriculars and other activities remain at 14 days.

If you want to exercise this option, it is recommended to make your appointment well in advance.

GH Public Health Department, Aberdeen

• Monday-Friday 7:00 am to Noon
• All ages, Pre-registration required
• Results in 48 hours by text or email
• Free, but if you have insurance you will be asked to provide it for billing.
• Support: 1-888-702-9042
• To make an appointment, go to www.curative.com

Rite Aid on Myrtle Street in Hoquiam

• Monday-Sunday 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• Ages 4 and older, Pre-registration required
• Free, but if you have insurance you will be asked to provide it for billing.
• To make the required appointment, visit the Hoquiam Rite Aid web page.

Summit Pacific (Elma) / Curative

• Available 5 days a week 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• All ages, Pre-registration required
• Results in 48 hours by text or email
• Free, but if you have insurance you will be asked to provide it for billing.
• Support: 1-888-702-9042
• www.curative.com

Health Mart Pharmacies (Elma & McCleary)

• All ages, Monday-Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Please visit DoINeedaCOVID19Test.com to register and schedule the required appointment.
• 1(800) 635-8611 for those with no internet & printer access
• Free, but if you have insurance you will be asked to provide it for billing purposes.
• Elma (360) 482-2442
• McCleary (360) 495-0700

Agenda for the meeting (pdf) Attend the meeting (Zoom link)

The next regular meeting of the School Board is scheduled for 5 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 21, via webinar. In addition to the links above, you can find the agenda and how to attend the meeting posted on the website and district calendar in advance of the meeting.

• Superintendent Alicia Henderson, ahenderson@asd5.org

• Business Office, Elyssa Louderback, elouderback@asd5.org
• Human Resources, Christi Sayres, csayres@asd5.org
• Special Education, Rick Bates, rbates@asd5.org
• Career & Technical Education, Lynn Green, lgreen@asd5.org
• Teaching, Learning & Technology, Traci Sandstrom, tsandstrom@asd5.org
• Food Services, Jaime Matisons, jmatisons@asd5.org

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The Aberdeen School District does not discriminate in any programs or activities on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, color, national origin, age, veteran or military status, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, disability, or the use of a trained dog guide or service animal and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. The following employees have been designated to handle questions and complaints of alleged discrimination: Christi Sayres, Title IX Coordinator and Civil rights Compliance Coordinator, 216 North G St., Aberdeen, WA 98520; (360) 538-2222; csayres@asd5.org; Dr. Richard Bates, Section 504/ADA Coordinator, 216 North G St., Aberdeen, WA 98520; (360) 538-2017; rbates@asd5.org.