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JAMESTOWN — Jamestown Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kevin Whitaker is addressing common concerns parents have about positive COVID-19 tests in the upcoming school year.
Jamestown Public Schools held a live parent meeting on Tuesday morning to discuss the procedure for students going back to school this fall. Despite the potential presence of COVID-19, it was determined that students will attend school partially, while functioning on a hybrid education platform.
Several concerns have risen regarding a positive test result arising among students and faculty. Upon a positive result, the health department will be contacted and will utilize a contact tracing system as the first step of the process. This is a process that has been used throughout the rise of COVID cases in New York State. It helps determine who the infected individual was in contact with. Superintendent Kevin Whitaker explains how this step is what makes the splitting of the students into small cohorts so crucial to everyone’s safety.
After investigating the case, Whitaker said, “They [the Health Department] will make a determination based on distance and time spent with the infected person about quarantine. They will tell us what the required health procedure will be”.
The following procedure can be anywhere from continuation of PPE and monitoring students and faculty for symptoms to quarantine.
The division of students into cohorts along with a detailed attention to absence and attendance of children will aid in efforts to make this process effective as possible as safety while the continuation of education is the most important matter, Whitaker said.
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