Dear Superintendents,
We want to provide you with a brief update on the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) situation and some new materials for use with parents.
There are still no known cases of COVID-19 in San Diego County, but we continue to monitor the situation closely. The San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency will be hosting a press conference tomorrow to provide an update on the region's efforts to prepare for a potential outbreak.
We have heard from many of you that parents are asking when and how your district will decide to close a school. Included in this email is a
template parent letter (in English and Spanish) explaining that the directive to close will come from public health, and that we’ve been assured by public health officials that school closures are unwarranted at this time.
I also want to draw your attention to updated guidance from local health officials for when a student or staff member should remain home. They advise that all children and staff members with respiratory symptoms and fever of >100 F / >37.8 C (lowered from 100.4 F) should remain home from school and other activities until they have no fever for 24 hours, without fever medication. They also added that students and staff who have severe productive coughs (i.e., spewing respiratory droplets) that are not typical for them should stay home. This information has been shared with school nurses and is posted on
SDCOE’s website.
We are also providing an FAQ courtesy of San Diego Unified in both
English and
Spanish that provides responses in understandable language. We encourage you to modify these for use with staff as well.
If you have questions about these materials, please contact Chief of Staff Music Watson at 858-292-3719 or
via email
. We will continue to share updates and resources as this situation unfolds.
Sincerely,
Paul
Dr. Paul Gothold
San Diego County Superintendent of Schools
phone: 858-292-3514
