Last week, Waukesha County Public Health (WCPH), in partnership with local school districts, announced that quarantine guidelines for K-12 schools will immediately be amended in schools that continue to commit to COVID-19 mitigation measures.
Observations from Districts with in-person learning in our area have found very few cases of transmission after COVID-19 exposures in school. That trend is also true within the OASD. In addition, since January we have seen a significant and continued decrease in COVID-19 cases, quarantines, and isolations among our students and staff and in our community as a whole. This trend is encouraging and has led to the roll back in guidelines issued by Waukesha County.
OASD Quarantine Changes:
- The OASD will adopt the WCPH guidelines, eliminating mandatory quarantines effective immediately.
- Children who are currently in quarantine due to close contact can return to school on Monday. However, families can continue to self-quarantine their child, if they would like.
- The OASD Health Services team will continue to track COVID-19 cases among staff and students and follow their contact tracing procedures.
- Health Services will continue to notify families if their child may have been in contact with someone who is COVID-19 positive and will ask families to monitor their child for symptoms.
- Families may also self-quarantine their child if they so choose.
- Identified close contacts must remain symptom-free and agree to self-monitor for symptoms a full 14 days following exposure.
- If a child shows symptoms of COVID-19, they will need to stay home and families will need to contact the school attendance line with information on their symptoms.
- OASD Health Services will contact families with additional information about their options for COVID-19 testing, isolation, and returning to school.
- It is important to remember that these new guidelines only apply to exposures that have occurred in the school setting.