August 25, 2021
Dear BSD families,
I want to share important updates as we near the first school day on September 7, 2021. Last evening, the Oakland County Health Division (OCHD) announced an emergency health order requiring wearing a mask inside school buildings for students PK-12 and staff. Click HERE to view the order. This order is effective for our school district beginning today.
We also want to update you on quarantine guidelines from OCHD. After reviewing, we have decided to use seating charts for our students throughout the school day inside our buildings as a mitigation strategy. When we have a positive COVID-19 case, administrators will be directing students or staff to quarantine in cooperation with the OCHD. Vaccinated individuals will not be quarantined. The OCHD will quarantine individuals exposed to a positive case inside our school buildings with less than three feet in physical distance. At this point, our protocols are lining up similarly to last year's measures at the conclusion of the year for inside the school buildings. One difference is we do not have any directives for outside of our school buildings.
We have updated our guidance below. Updates and changes have been bolded.
2021-2022 Back to School Guidance
- Masks – Masks are mandated PK-12 for staff and students. Click HERE for the OCHD emergency order.
- Bussing – Masks are required on public vehicles, including school buses, per Federal Order.
- Physical Distancing – Staff, and students are expected to maintain 3 feet of physical distancing inside the classroom where possible.
- COVID-19 Screening, Testing, and Vaccination – Not currently required. COVID 19 vaccination continues to be encouraged for all eligible individuals.
- Monitoring Symptoms – Staff and families are expected to use good judgment, stay home when they are sick, and report absences according to our attendance policies. Promptly pick your child(ren) up or arrange for pick up from school if signs or symptoms of illness are present.
If your child(ren) has one or more of the following symptoms, please keep them home until they have been symptom-free for the last 24 hours without medication.
- Shortness of breath, cough, difficulty breathing, loss of smell
If your child(ren) has two or more following symptoms, please keep them home until they have been symptom-free for 24 hours without medication.
- Feverish, chills, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea, muscle aches, fatigue, headache, congestion, runny nose, sore throat
Inform your child(ren)'s school if they test positive for COVID-19, you will be asked to follow Oakland County Health Department guidelines, including isolation until it is safe to return.
- Contact tracing, isolation, and quarantine – The district will inform families of positive cases present in their child's classroom at the elementary buildings. In addition, 6-12 families will be notified of any positive cases present in each school building. Finally, the district will maintain a dashboard of current COVID-19 positive cases and the number of students quarantined at each building.
We will have seating charts for our students throughout the school day inside our buildings. When we have a positive COVID-19 case, administrators will be directing students or staff to quarantine in cooperation with the OCHD. Vaccinated individuals will not be quarantined. The OCHD will quarantine individuals exposed to a positive case inside our school buildings with less than three feet in physical distance. On the bus and in the lunchroom, we will do our best to have 3 feet of physical distancing; however, these are areas where we cannot consistently maintain 3 feet of physical distancing.
- Cleaning & Disinfection – Standard daily cleaning protocols using products approved by the CDC to be effective against the COVID-19 virus. Additional cleaning as needed and necessary.
- Ventilation – Ventilation systems in buildings will continue to operate using a high filtration filter. On school buses, windows may be opened slightly when safe and practicable. Air Purifier systems continue in each classroom.
- Visitors – By appointment only for all of our school buildings. All visitors and parents must wear masks inside school buildings, including all indoor extracurricular activities.
Finally, we are announcing one final opportunity to switch learning platforms for families. Please notify Megan Koslowski, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. This request needs to be made by Friday, August 27th, at 3 pm. As a reminder, any enrollment in either platform is semester-based. Therefore, no changes will be granted after Friday at 3 pm.
Our COVID-19 challenges continue for our school district. We will continue to offer the best educational experiences for all of our students. We appreciate your flexibility and continued support.
Sincerely,
Dr. Karl Heidrich
Interim Superintendent
Brandon School District
View the August 19th Back To School Notification