As we prepare to return to our administrative buildings, it's critical that we are all following our health standards and utilizing available resources to keep ourselves and the DPS community safe and healthy. We know there is a lot of information being shared now, and a lot being asked of you -- so we hope these highlights of a few key resources and updates regarding a safe return are helpful:

As you know, DPS has partnered with Gary Community Investments to provide access to free COVID-19 testing to all DPS employees. We ask that team members who will be reporting back to their worksite take a test two weeks prior to their return, and every two weeks after that.  

While this test is optional, we strongly encourage all team members to take advantage of this free service, keeping in mind that 40% of those who test positive have no symptoms. The drive-through tests are quick, and results are generally shared in 1-2 days. As of Oct. 1, more than 17,000 individual tests have been completed at our DPS sites, and 1.02% have been positive. Please support your team in making time to visit one of our testing sites to receive the test.

DPS now has an active COVID-19 Case Reporting Hotline: 720-426-9999. As a manager, please keep this information at hand. This line is intended for COVID-19 coordinators, nurses, school leaders and central office managers to report confirmed positive COVID-19 cases among students or staff. It is not intended for individuals to report their personal positive COVID-19 diagnosis or ask personal health questions. Employees who receive a positive COVID-19 diagnosis should report their diagnosis to their manager to determine their leave and remote work options.

When a confirmed positive COVID-19 case is reported via the hotline, DPS' new COVID-19 Response Team will assist the reporter with completing a report with the public health department, ensuring the individual with a positive test result isolates immediately, determining other impacted individuals who may need to quarantine, and communicating appropriate information to other team members.

It is important to report a confirmed positive COVID-19 case so that the health and safety of all our students and staff are prioritized. Please report all confirmed positive cases, even those of staff who received their positive test result through DPS’ free testing sites.

The DPS 5 are evidence-based health protocols designed in partnership with health officials, and following these guidelines is the best way to ensure we can continue in-person learning and access to our buildings. Please continue to practice and reinforce these with your team. As a reminder, these guidelines are: Complete your daily health screen; wear a mask or face covering; maintain physical distance; meet virtually; and practice good hygiene.

We are learning, as school-based staff have returned to work, it is not human nature to remain distanced from friends and co-workers. However, this is where we are seeing some need to extend quarantining or isolation to larger numbers of staff because of failure to adhere to distancing guidelines. Please stress taking care of ourselves and one another by following The DPS 5 health safeguards – it is critical for the overall well-being of the DPS community.

Our COVID-19 Response Team is continuing to work hard to create and align more resources to prioritize the health and safety of our students and staff as we respond to COVID cases. Stay tuned for a dashboard to track COVID cases across DPS, as well as the Safe Access health screening for students, and more.

We hope that all team members had the opportunity to tune into Our DPS Day to ground ourselves in our Shared Core Values, priorities and commitments, as well as learn more about how we will align and focus our efforts around our cornerstones: Equity, Instructional Excellence and Collaborative Teamwork, and around our Crisis Priorities.

While the timeline to input goals has shifted this year, we are asking all LIFT team members now to please begin setting goals for this school year, to have them approved and inputted by Oct. 23. In this time of uncertainty, and while duties may look different than the past, the LIFT framework provides an opportunity to ensure our most important work moves forward as well as valuable growth and development feedback for team members. The 2020-21 LIFT goals should still align with our cornerstones and have an impact on our efforts to be a more equitable district.

Review LIFT at a Glance for other important activities and timelines. Questions? Reach out to your HR partner or the LIFT team at lift@dpsk12.org.

Denver Public Schools sends all district newsletters and critical employee communications through Constant Contact. Please do not unsubscribe your dpsk12.org email address from any message; if you unsubscribe from one newsletter or one communication, you will be removed from all other district-managed email lists in Constant Contact. If you have any questions, please email newsletters@dpsk12.org.