Masks:
The Park Hill Board of Education approved a mask mandate for all district facilities from January 9 through February 3. The Board will review this again at its January 27 meeting.
Vaccinations:
We encourage everyone who qualifies for the COVID-19 vaccine to get it. You can find information about vaccinations on the state of Missouri’s site.
Monitoring Data:
We will continue to monitor the data about COVID-19 cases, as well as community data. We will also continue to collaborate with our local health departments, following all their requirements.
Buses:
Buses are considered public transportation, so students and drivers are federally required to wear masks. Please consider taking your child to school instead of sending them on the bus. We will not be able to provide physical distancing on the buses, but we will take as many precautions as possible.
- Drivers will wear masks when parked at schools and when students are boarding and getting off the bus.
- We will provide hand sanitizer.
- We will open windows when possible.
- First Student will train drivers about health and safety precautions for COVID-19.
- First Student will create assigned seats for students riding the bus, with siblings sitting together when possible. The seat behind the driver will remain empty.
- When possible, First Student will assign drivers to a single bus and route.
Quarantines:
Starting in January, the Kansas City Health Department will take back the contact tracing duties when a Park Hill student or employee has a positive case of COVID-19. We will let families and staff know if there is a positive case in their building. We will also provide a message to families if there is someone with COVID in any of your child’s classrooms. It will be the health departments that will let you know if there needs to be a time of quarantine.
Testing:
We will still provide free, optional antigen testing for students and staff. Families of students who have symptoms should contact their school nurses, who can help them request and schedule a test. Staff members who have symptoms should contact their supervisors and then call the testing site.
Physical Distancing:
We will take steps to promote physical distancing, although we cannot keep everyone three to six feet apart. This could look different at each school, due to the difference in the spaces, and it could include . . .
- Staggering the use of common spaces, including the cafeteria, playground and other areas
- Rearranging furniture and equipment to move students farther apart
- Modifying passing periods
- Changing arrival and dismissal procedures
Handwashing:
Throughout the day, we will encourage hand washing, and we will also supply hand sanitizer in every classroom. Students and staff members must wash hands or use hand sanitizer before and after meals and recess. We will also teach proper etiquette for preventing respiratory illness, including covering your cough and not touching your face.
Cleaning:
We are cleaning high-touch surfaces and shared objects at least once a day. We will provide wipes and spray bottles with disinfectant in every classroom.
Visitors:
We still need to minimize the number of outside people in our schools, but starting in January, we will start to allow some volunteers. This will include guest speakers, volunteers during the school day who do not have any contact with students, and volunteers for after-school clubs or activities who are never left alone with students. Contact your child’s school to see if there are any available volunteer opportunities, which could be up to two hours per week. Volunteers will need to meet our screening requirements. For now, we cannot allow visits, such as at lunchtime. We will reevaluate these rules again at the end of third quarter.
If parents need to bring something to the school during school hours, they will stay in the front office, and we will ask them to follow physical distancing rules. We will also work with families when we need to have meetings for students’ individual education programs (IEPs), 504 plans and individual health plans (IHPs). If parents need to drop off medication, they will make an appointment with the health room before coming to the school.
Outside Food:
Our Nutrition Services department can no longer provide birthday treats. See our Menus and Nutrition page for more information about approved treats for birthdays and classroom parties.
Food Service:
The Nutrition Services staff is keeping up with the latest federal, state and local guidelines for preparing and serving meals. To create more physical distancing, each school will work to spread students out and provide meal schedules that allow students to wash their hands before and after eating.
Water:
We are asking students and staff members to please come to school and work with a water bottle, if possible. Our water fountains will be on.
Large Gatherings:
During the school day, we are not hosting grade-level field trips, but schools can host certain large events outside. We will host some events inside, like grade-level assemblies, if they have an approved safety plan that includes physical distancing.
Special Education:
We are including health and safety precautions as we work with each student’s IEP. We also make changes to 504 plans when necessary to meet students’ needs.
