• Given the substantial increase in the community transmission rate of COVID-19 for Fulton and Dekalb Counties, and the need to further assess the positivity rate of employees; APS will begin our second semester virtually. 
• This will allow students and staff to test, complete needed isolation and quarantine periods in alignment with updated Department of Public Health and CDC guidance, and participate in vaccination opportunities.
•  We will continue to monitor data and consult with public health officials as we prepare to resume in-person learning after this time.

• We welcome your questions and feedback at any time via APS Let’s Talk
• It can be accessed by clicking the “Contact Us” tab on the APS homepage at atlantapublicschools.us 
• We will add to our FAQs based on your questions.

• A modified in-school quarantine that allows students who are not up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccines to continue attending in-person learning as long as they remain without symptoms (e.g., fever, cough, difficulty breathing, vomiting, diarrhea), continue to wear their mask, and participate in regular testing throughout their 10-day quarantine.

• Any APS student who,
  • Had a COVID-19 exposure at school or a school-related activity
  • Remains without symptoms
  • Can participate in regular COVID-19 testing
  • Can continue to wear a well-fitting mask for the full 10 days after exposure

• All students must have a consent form on file before participating in APS Surveillance Testing. Please use this link to enroll your student https://studentapp.viralsolutionsga.com/consent

• No, they do not need to test if they are still within 90 days of their previous infection.
• Please submit an APS Self-Report for your student if they tested positive for COVID-19: http://tinyAPS.com/?CovidStudentForm
• After an exposure, your student must continue to wear their mask and monitor for symptoms for 10 full days.

• We strongly encourage students up-to-date on their vaccines to participate in Surveillance Testing.
• However, if they choose not to participate, they will not need to quarantine at home after an exposure as long as they remain without symptoms and continue to wear their mask.

• They will need to stay home and isolate until their symptoms resolve or they meet isolation period (depending on their situation).
• Please follow DPH guidance under - What should I do if I am a close contact to someone with COVID-19 and get sick? https://dph.georgia.gov/contact
• Please reference the “Close Contact and Quarantine Decision Tree” for additional guidance.

• You should submit an APS Self-Report form for your student if they test positive for COVID-19: http://tinyAPS.com/?CovidStudentForm
• Your student should remain at home until they meet DPH Isolation Guidance https://dph.georgia.gov/isolation-contact

No, this program is only available to asymptomatic close contacts who were exposed at school or any other school-related activity. 

• If a student tests positive, the parent will be contacted by their school nurse or other designated individual to conduct case investigation and contact tracing. Additional isolation and quarantine guidance will be provided during the investigation.

• APS surveillance testing is a free program to APS students and staff
• It is conveniently provided at your student’s school and requires very little wait times
• Your student will be tested in a location that they are familiar with
• Surveillance testing will allow your student to continue attending in-person learning during their quarantine period

• The benefits of surveillance testing include allowing APS to test, receive test results (within 24 hours), and notify individuals of a clinically significant reading before coming to school or work.
• This rapid test detects the presence of COVID-19 even in individuals who may be asymptomatic. 
• Implementing comprehensive testing strategies is one way we continue to minimize any exposure to COVID-19 in our schools.

APS and Viral Solutions have designed the COVID Surveillance Testing Healthier Schools Program to help keep kids, families, and teachers safer from COVID outbreaks. The e-consent form is now available and only needs to be completed once to allow testing for the school year. Access the consent form here: http://tinyURL.com/HealthyAPS

Surveillance testing on a weekly basis will continue to be offered in our schools for students and staff.

• While we do not require testing for students, we strongly encourage all parents to provide consent for their child or children to be tested. 
• When students are tested, it helps everyone in our learning environment to be protected together.
• Students and staff can now complete their COVID-19 surveillance test consent form online at http://tinyURL.com/HealthyAPS

• Viral Solutions partners with APS to operate a community PCR surveillance testing site at Frederick Douglass High School, located at 225 Hamilton E Holmes Dr NW, Atlanta, GA 30318. 
• This site offers a PCR COVID-19 test at no charge. The hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
• No appointment is required. Staff, students, families of APS students, and community members may receive testing at this site.

• Testing is available on a weekly basis for all students with parental consent.

• Quarantine keeps someone who might have been exposed to the virus away from others.
• Isolation keeps someone who is infected with the virus away from others, even in their home.

People who are not vaccinated and have been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19.

Close Contact through Proximity and Duration of Exposure: Someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person (laboratory-confirmed or a clinically compatible illness) for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three individual 5-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes). 

An infected person can spread SARS-CoV-2 starting from 2 days before they have any symptoms (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days before the positive specimen collection date), until they meet criteria for discontinuing home isolation. 

• • Exception: In the K–12 indoor classroom setting, the close contact definition excludes students who were within 3 to 6 feet of an infected student (laboratory-confirmed or a clinically compatible illness) where
• Both students were engaged in consistent and correct use of well-fitting masks; and
• Other K–12 school prevention strategies (such as universal and correct mask use, physical distancing, increased ventilation) were in place in the K–12 school setting. This exception does not apply to teachers, staff, or other adults in the indoor classroom setting.

• People who are fully vaccinated and not experiencing any symptoms
• Note: Fully vaccinated people should get tested 3-5 days after their exposure, even if they do not have symptoms
• People who have tested positive for COVID-19 within the past 3 months and recovered do not have to quarantine or get tested again as long as they do not develop new symptoms.
• Note: Persons exposed to other persons who have been exposed do not need to quarantine.

• In the event of an identified positive case of COVID-19, all close contacts (as identified by case investigation in collaboration with health services) must be excluded (recommended for quarantining) from the school until fourteen days after last contact with case (usually last day the case attended). If a close contact becomes ill and is diagnosed with COVID-19, they must remain excluded for their isolation period and until told they are no longer contagious.
• If cohorting was practiced so that the case would have only had contact with those in the same classroom, the other teachers, staff and students in the school do not need to be quarantined.
• If classes were not cohorted, the school needs to assess everyone in the school that the case may have come into contact with and exclude them for the 14-day quarantine period.

• According to DPH, “A COVID-19 outbreak in a school setting will is defined as: Two or more laboratory confirmed COVID-19 cases among students or staff with illness onsets within a 14-day period, who are epidemiologically linked (e.g., have a common exposure or have been in contact with each other), do not share a household, and were not identified as close contacts of each other in another setting during standard case investigation or contact tracing”.
• If an outbreak is confirmed, school closures will be implemented for the timeframe designated by local public health officials.

No, they cannot attend in-person instruction or work. They should be isolated per CDC guidelines.

• Once a case has been identified, parents are contacted within the same day if possible (not to exceed a period of 24 hours) to inform them of potential exposures.
• Written communication is sent per our procedures for notification that include the date of exposure, length of quarantine period and public health resources.

• COVID 19-vaccines are effective. They decrease the chances of getting and spreading the virus that causes COVID-19. COVID-19 vaccines help keep you from getting seriously ill even if you do get COVID-19. Getting vaccinated yourself may also protect people around you, particularly people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
• Fully vaccinated students may remain in school and staff may remain at work to avoid interruptions to in-person education or workflow, even if they are exposed to someone with COVID-19, so long as they remain without symptoms.

For hours and locations for vaccination sites and mobile units, or to download the parent consent form for minor patients, visit www.fultoncountyga.gov/covidvaccine. 

• Individuals who test positive for COVID OR who are exposed to a confirmed case should complete one of the links below for self-reporting:
• Student self-report form: http://tinyAPS.com/?CovidStudentForm
• Staff self-report form: http://tinyAPS.com/?CovidStaffForm

• COVID Cases are tracked through collaborative efforts with School Nurses, Health Services, and Data Information Group to collect and report data.
• COVID-19 related questions or concerns should be emailed to: Covidreports@atlanta.k12.ga.us

Case investigation and case management will be conducted by the assigned school or district nurse in collaboration with Health Services and Fulton County Board of Health who conduct actual contact tracing.

People who have been exposed to a confirmed case of COVID-19 should test between days 3-5 of last exposure.

• APS offers surveillance testing throughout the district at school locations and district offices.
• COVID-19 tests are offered at private health care providers.
• COVID-19 tests are available at Specimen Points of Collection sites in collaboration with the Department of Public Health. An appointment can be made through the DPH website at https://dph.georgia.gov/covidtesting

A long-term substitute or building-level designee will be assigned to deliver instruction virtually.

• Teachers will place current academic work in an electronic repository (Google Classroom) and a teacher/tutor will provide after school tutoring for students absent during the quarantine period. Designated virtual teachers/tutors and number of tutorial sessions will be determined by school-level administration based on need.
• A virtual learning tutorial schedule will be developed by the school and implemented over the course of the quarantine period.

• A long-term substitute or building-level designee will be assigned to the teacher’s classroom.
• Current substitute teacher plans will be used during the quarantine period for students affected.

The entire school will pivot to virtual learning.

Effective March 1, 2022, APS will have a Mask Optional protocol for all faculty, staff, students, and visitors in all APS buildings and on all school buses.

However, there are some instances where masks will still be required based on federal guidelines and Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) recommendations. APS will update these guidelines as regulations change:  

• Per DPH recommendations, students and staff who end isolation after 5 days will still be required to wear a mask for the remainder of the 10 days after they develop symptoms (or have tested positive but show no symptoms). And regardless of vaccination status, students and staff who are exposed to a positive COVID-19 case should continue to wear a mask for the full 10 days after exposure.

• Parents are asked to respond to the five daily health screening questions quickly and easily before your student reports to school.  
• These questions will help you assess if the student has had exposure to COVID-19, has experienced any potential symptoms or illnesses, and if they have been advised to quarantine.  
• The answers of this questionnaire will determine if the child should attend school or not.  

Learn more about the HealthCheck Screener on our webpage here: https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/Page/65256

APS encourages all students, families, and employees to continue to review and follow the most recent travel guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control (Domestic Travel During COVID-19 | CDC). According to research conducted by the CDC, people who are not fully vaccinated are more likely to get COVID-19 and spread it to others (CDC, 2021). For this reason, the CDC recommends taking the following precautions after returning from travel.  

   ALL Travelers:  

• Self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms; isolate and get tested if you develop symptoms.  
• Follow all state and local recommendations or requirements after travelling.  

   If you are NOT fully vaccinated:  

 Self-quarantine and get tested after travel  

• Get a viral test 3-5 days after returning from travelling.  
• Check for COVID-19 testing locations near you  
• Stay home and self-quarantine for a full 7 days after travelling, even if you test negative in 3-5 days.  
• If you don’t get tested, stay home and self-quarantine for 10 days after travelling. 

All schools received a shipment of PPE in mid-November. We are not aware of any PPE shortages at any school currently. We have instructed principals that, if they have an immediate need for additional PPE, they should order supplies using the normal in-school ordering process. Teachers should receive PPE from their school and should not have need to include these supplies on Donors Choose and classroom wish lists.