Renaissance Academy is prepared to implement social distancing strategies, if needed, to reduce or slow the transmission of infectious disease. Those strategies include but are not limited to:

1. Altering class schedules

2. Adjusting room assignments

3. Cancellation of extra-curricular activities

4. School closure. Decisions regarding school closure will only be made in conjunction with the Utah County Department of Health. In the event of closure, distance education will be provided for students to work on their studies remotely. 

According to the Centers for Disease Control, if you are sick with COVID-19 or suspect you are infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, follow the steps below to help prevent the disease from spreading to people in your home and community.

1. If you think you have been exposed to COVID-19 AND develop a fever and symptoms, such as cough or difficulty breathing, call your healthcare provider for medical advice.

2. Stay home: People who are mildly ill with COVID-19 are able to isolate themselves at home during their illness. You should restrict activities outside your home, except for getting medical care.

3. Avoid public areas: Do not go to work, school, or public areas.

4. Avoid public transportation, ride-sharing, or taxis.

5. Call ahead: If you have a medical appointment, call the healthcare provider and tell them that you have or may have COVID-19. This will help the healthcare provider’s office take steps to keep other people from getting infected or exposed.

6. Alert health department: Ask your healthcare provider to call the local or state health department. Persons who are placed under active monitoring or facilitated self-monitoring should follow instructions provided by their local health department or occupational health professionals, as appropriate.

7. Call 911 if you have a medical emergency: notify the dispatch personnel that you have, or are being evaluated for COVID-19. If possible, put on a facemask before emergency medical services arrive.

8. Once your family has consulted with the County Health Department and determined if isolation/quarantine is appropriate please enter your case information through our website portal, if you haven’t already done so. Please follow up with an email to your child’s teacher and copy the Interim Dean of Students and Families lwatne@renacademy.org regarding your student’s planned absences. Our teachers will work with any family who is isolated or quarantined to provide them with lesson materials for their students to continue their studies from home.

9. Schooling during isolation/quarantine: We are not planning to offer on-line learning options at this time. Parents of students who are isolated/quarantined will need to work with the classroom teacher to obtain the classwork that will be covered during the quarantine period. Late work policies will be adjusted to accommodate your circumstances.

We are currently working on an after-school tutoring program that will start in the latter part of September. The tutoring is funded by a grant we received to target COVID-19 related learning loss. During the first few weeks of school we will be assessing all students to identify any possible areas that require intervention. Tutoring will be made available to any students that demonstrate a need for it. While this would not provide direct instruction for students in quarantine, it would be available as a short-term support for those students in completing their work at home.

Discontinuing home isolation

1. Stay at home until instructed to leave. Patients with confirmed COVID-19 should remain under home isolation precautions until the risk of secondary transmission to others is thought to be low.

2. Talk to your healthcare provider: The decision to discontinue home isolation precautions should be made on a case-by-case basis, in consultation with healthcare providers and state and local health departments.

The following outlines the general principles and verified facts that should be used by faculty and staff in their discussions with students about COVID-19.

1. General Principles

Try to keep information simple and remind them that health and school officials are working hard to keep everyone safe and healthy.

What is COVID-19?

• COVID-19 is the short name for “coronavirus disease 2019. It is a new virus. Doctors and scientists are still learning about it.

• Recently, this virus has made a lot of people sick. Scientists and doctors think that most people will be ok, especially kids, but some people might get pretty sick.

• Doctors and health experts are working hard to help people stay healthy.

What can I do so that I don’t get COVID-19?

You can practice healthy habits at home, school, and play to help protect against the spread of COVID-19:

• Cough or sneeze into a tissue or your elbow. If you sneeze or cough into a tissue, throw it in the trash right away.

• Keep your hands out of your mouth, nose, and eyes. This will help keep germs out of your body.

• Wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Follow these five steps—wet, lather (make bubbles), scrub (rub together), rinse and dry. You can sing the “Happy Birthday” song twice.

• If you don’t have soap and water, have an adult help you use a special hand cleaner.

• Keep things clean. Older children can help adults at home and school clean the things we touch the most, like desks, doorknobs, light switches, and remote controls. (Note for adults: you can find more information about cleaning and disinfecting on CDC’s website.)

• If you feel sick, stay home. Just like you don’t want to get other people’s germs in your body, other people don’t want to get your germs either.

What happens if you get sick with COVID-19?

• COVID-19 can look different in different people. For many people, being sick with COVID-19 would be a little bit like having the flu. People can get a fever, cough, or have a hard time taking deep breaths. Most people who have gotten COVID-19 have not gotten very sick. Only a small group of people who get it have had more serious problems. From what doctors have seen so far, most children don’t seem to get very sick. While a lot of adults get sick, most adults get better.
• If you do get sick, it doesn’t mean you have COVID-19. People can get sick from all kinds of germs. What’s important to remember is that if you do get sick, the adults at home and school will help get you any help that you need.
• Teachers will deliver instruction to their students on everyday actions to reduce the spread of germs.
• Remind children to stay away from people who are coughing or sneezing or sick.
• Remind them to cough or sneeze into a tissue or their elbow, then throw the tissue into the trash.
• Discuss any new actions that may be taken at school to help protect children and school staff. (e.g., increased handwashing, cancellation of events or activities)

• Get children into a handwashing habit.
• Teach them to wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after blowing their nose, coughing, or sneezing; going to the bathroom; and before eating or preparing food.
• If soap and water are not available, teach them to use hand sanitizer. Hand sanitizer should contain at least 60% alcohol. Supervise young children when they use hand sanitizer to prevent swallowing alcohol, especially in schools and childcare facilities.

Our general sick policy requires student exclusion in the following cases.

1. When the child appears to be severely ill, is not responsive, irritable, persistently crying, having difficulty breathing, or having a quickly spreading rash. 

2. Fever (temperature above 101°F  by any method) and behavior change or other signs and symptoms (e.g., sore throat, rash, vomiting, or diarrhea). For infants less than 2 months of age, an unexplained fever should be evaluated by a health professional. For these infants younger than 2 months of age, get urgent medical advice for temperatures above 100.4°F, whether or not other symptoms are present. 

3. Diarrhea—Exclusion is required for all diapered children whose stool is not contained in the diaper and toilet-trained children if the diarrhea is causing "accidents," and for children whose stool frequency exceeds 2 stools above normal per 24-hours for that child while the child is in the program or whose stool contains more than a drop of blood or mucus. Diarrhea is defined by stool which is occurring more frequently and/or is less formed in consistency than usual in the child, and not associated with changes of diet. 

4. Vomiting 2 or more times in the previous 24 hours, unless the vomiting is determined to be caused by a non-communicable/non-infectious condition and the child is not in danger of dehydration. 

5. Abdominal pain that continues for more than 2 hours or intermittent abdominal pain associated with fever or other signs or symptoms. 

6. Mouth sores with drooling that the child cannot control unless the child's primary health care provider or local health department authority states that the child is noninfectious. 

7. Rash with fever or behavioral changes, until a primary care provider has determined that the illness is not a communicable disease. 

8. Skin sores that are weeping fluid and are on an exposed body surface that cannot be covered with a waterproof dressing. 

9. Streptococcal pharyngitis (i.e., strep throat or other streptococcal infection), until the child has had two doses of a course of an appropriate antibiotic 12 hours apart.

10. Chickenpox (varicella) until all lesions have dried or crusted (usually 6 days after onset of rash) and no new lesions have shown for at least 24 hours.

11. Rubella, until 7 days after the rash appears

12. Pertussis, until 5 days of antibiotic treatment (21 days if untreated)

13. Mumps, until 5 days after onset of parotid gland swelling

14. Measles, until 4 days after onset of rash

15. Hepatitis A virus infection, until 1 week after onset of illness or jaundice or as directed by the health department

RENAISSANCE COVID REPORTING PORTAL

UTAH COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT

CORONAVIRUS TESTING QUESTIONS

WORLDWIDE DASHBOARD: 

CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL - Coronavirus Information

COVID-19 Daily Temperature and Symptom Monitoring Worksheet