August 20, 2020
COVID-19 Update
A Message from the Executive Director
Greetings,
I hope you and your families are staying safe and healthy during these challenging times. As our community works to navigate this new normal, DCIU is committed to providing our services in an environment that is safe for both staff and students.Our recently released Health and Safety Plan provides a detailed outline of the procedures in place as we begin to reopen our buildings and facilities. Please take a moment to review this document and future communications in the coming weeks as DCIU provides news and updates related to COVID-19. Be safe.

Maria Edelberg, Ed.D.
Executive Director, DCIU
The goal of our Health and Safety Plan is to put guidance and strategies in place to support mitigation efforts around COVID-19. Delaware County Intermediate Unit (DCIU) and Delaware County Technical Schools (DCTS) are mindful that if there are cases of COVID-19 in the community, there are no strategies that can completely eliminate transmission risk within our organization.
 
Our plan was created using guidance from the Chester County Department of Health, Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Phased Reopening and the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These guidelines were also informed by Governor Wolf’s Process to Reopen Pennsylvania. The Governor’s office and PDE have categorized reopening into three broad phases: red, yellow, or green. These designations signal how counties and/or regions may ease some restrictions on school, work, congregate settings, and social interactions:
The Red Phase: Schools remain closed for in-person instruction and all instruction must be provided via remote learning. DCIU and DCTS will implement the developed Continuity of Education Plans. These can be found on the DCIU website, www.dciu.org. Large gatherings are prohibited.
The Yellow Phase and Green Phase: Schools may provide in-person instruction after developing a written Health and Safety Plan. DCIU and DCTS Health and Safety plan was approved by the Delaware County Intermediate Unit Board of Directors on July 1, 2020 and the Delaware County Area Vocational-Technical School Board of Directors) on July 1, 2020. This plan is also posted on the DCIU website, www.dciu.org.
  
It is important to be aware that this is a fluid document. Please note, that as a result of possible future Orders from the Governor and/or Department of Health on school openings or closings, data on COVID-19 cases, or if DCIU believes a different service delivery model is required, DCIU and DCTS may choose to implement one of the following types of programming for some or all of our schools and/or programs:
  • In person instruction
  • Blended reopening that balances in-person learning and remote learning for all
              students (i.e., alternating days or weeks) or some point in the year moves to a blended
              model of in-person learning and remote learning.
  • Total remote learning for all students.
  •     Specialized models of program design and implementation to assist in mitigation
               efforts.

It is our hope that the plans will remain consistent; however, the current pandemic has shown the importance of being flexible. The DCIU and DCTS administrative teams will be in direct contact with families and school district liaisons over the next week to communicate our revised plans. 
Guidance for Symptoms Monitoring and Other Safety Protocols
DCIU and DCTS have adopted many strategies in our Health and Safety Plan. Overall, DCIU and DCTS will require:
  • Students and clients are to self-screen prior to reporting to work and stay at home if experiencing any symptoms as outlined in the chart below.
  • Parents and guardians are required to self-screen their child prior to reporting to school or programs and keep your child home if experiencing any symptoms outlined in the chart below.
  • Children, students, and clients who are ill must stay home from programs and schools.
  • Children, students, and clients shall be sent home if they become ill at the program or service. 

Symptom Monitoring                                                                                                                             
Delaware County is served by the Chester County Health Department. DCIU and DCTS will implement their guidance for symptom monitoring. DCIU and DCTS requires all staff, students, parents, and clients to follow this process for self-screening:
  • Take temperature daily. Any elevated fever reported by an employee, child, student or client of 99.5°F must stay home.
  • Employee, child, student or client must stay home if he/she has 1 or more symptom(s) in Group A or 2 or more symptoms in Group B 
Ventilation
DCIU and DCTS will ensure that all ventilation systems are working properly. Additional, we will be implementing ways to increase circulation of outdoor air by opening doors and windows.
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