Introduction

Below you will find the most updated iteration of our COVID policies. Our school policies follow all state (CDPH) and county (Yolo County Health Department) guidelines and regulations. We want to acknowledge that the COVID pandemic is ever-changing and updates to our plan may occur to reflect new information or government mandates. 

Health Screenings

We ask all families and employees to continue screening at home. By stepping onto campus you are affirming you are in good health and free of the common COVID symptoms: 

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea

If an employee or student has ongoing symptoms of COVID (runny nose from allergies, cough from asthma, etc.), they may continue attending school provided they submit a letter from their medical provider that the symptoms are from a known condition and are not COVID related.

Please communicate ANY ABSENCE with our office, via office@daviswaldorf.org

In the absence of communication, we will assume your child has a COVID symptom and will require a test to return to school.

Face Coverings

A cloth face covering is a 2-layer (minimum) material that covers the nose and mouth. It may also contain a filter. It can be secured with ties or straps around the ears or head, or simply wrapped around the lower face. It can be made of a variety of materials, such as cotton, silk, or linen. 

Face Coverings for Students and Staff

The Davis Waldorf School will follow state and local public health guidelines which no longer require masks indoors for students and staff members. However, masking is still an important mitigation measure and is strongly recommended. Students and staff should bring masks daily in case the need arises. Masks are available in the office if needed. Per teacher requests, masks will be worn during Strings and Spanish classes that are indoors. Meals may occur indoors. Parents may request that their child be outside for meals in the grades or have special seating in the early childhood classroom. DWS will try to accommodate such requests. 

Volunteers and Field Trips 

Testing is recommended for volunteers and can be performed at home or in the office. Both at home antigen (rapid) tests and PCR tests are acceptable. 

Testing for Overnight Field Trips

We recommend students take a COVID test 72 hours (or less) before the first day of a trip. DWS is able to provide group testing for classes prior to a trip with notice and provide tests before a field trip when they are available from the county.

Positive Cases 

If your student or any member of your family tests positive, please notify the office immediately at registrar@daviswaldorf.org. Our registrar, Cori Brewer, will inform you of quarantine or isolation periods and testing requirements. We will notify classes of any positive case that was on campus during the infectious window. 

After 5 days, you can return to school if: you have no symptoms or your symptoms are getting better, and you haven't had a fever for 24 hours without taking fever-reducing medication, an antigen test taken on day 5 or later is negative, and you wear a mask around others through day 10.

Exposures outside of School require families (students, staff, and parents) to follow the Group Tracing Off Campus Exposure Decision Tree.

One-Way Masking

We understand that some families are most comfortable with continued masking and may have questions around masking protection when others in the same room are not masking. In the beginning of the pandemic masking was described as a method to protect the individual and those around them; however, with better masks which are now readily available, Dr. Sisson shares that single, one-way masking also provides a high degree of protection. For more information on one-way masking and how to ensure your mask has a sufficient seal, please watch this video.

Close Contact

The definition of a close contact is any individual who has shared indoor air space for a cumulative 15 minutes or more with a COVID positive person over a 24 hour period. 

Testing

Antigen Rapid Tests are available to take home, one for each student, in the office. Please stop by to pick up a test for your student. 

At-home Antigen (Rapid) Tests are accepted for students if: 

1. The parent verifies that their student was the one who tested
2. The parent verifies that they followed manufacturers’ instructions 
3. A photo of the test with the date and child’s name or initials are written on it is submitted to registrar@daviswaldorf.org

Staff are able to test at home without supervision. Tests must be substantiated with a picture, signature and the date it was collected. 

Antigen testing on site will be available based on need and staff availability. Class parents, please check in with the office when arranging a large class event if volunteers are hoping to test on campus so we may support testing. 

As per CDPH guidance, unvaccinated employees must submit a negative test weekly. 

Group Contact Tracing

Any student who has spent 15 minutes or more in the same inside room with the positive individual is considered a close contact and is recommended to test 3-5 days after the exposure in order to continue attending school. The school will notify families when an individual in their student’s class has notified the school of a positive test. 

After an Illness

Students and staff may return with a negative test, improved symptoms, and so long as they have gone over 24 hours without a fever or fever-reducing medication. At the beginning of an illness the viral load may be too low to detect COVID with a rapid test. If you test at symptom onset and continue to not feel well enough to return to school, it is recommended by Dr. Sisson that you test again 1-3 days after initial test. 

Travel

After International travel, we ask families to be extra vigilant and look out for COVID symptoms. We highly encourage testing after all travel, including domestic travel.