Dear WES Families,
We learned this morning that a student in the 3A homeroom tested positive for COVID-19 during yesterday’s on-site testing. They are currently symptom-free, and we wish them continued good health.
We immediately reported this information to the Montgomery County Health Department. Contact tracing has revealed that only the students in 3A were considered close contacts, and they were sent home this morning to begin their quarantine.
Test-to-Stay Program
We will attend a meeting with the Montgomery County Health Department at 2 p.m. today to discuss the new test-to-stay program that the county is launching. The test-to-stay program allows (unvaccinated) students who are close contacts of positive cases to participate in on-site learning if they are asymptomatic and test negative through a rapid test every morning of the quarantine period. We have every reason to believe that this program will be approved and will launch next week. WES is prepared to participate in this program on Monday, and we will be updating our community shortly after the meeting with what we have learned.
Vaccination Clinic
As you know, the FDA approved the Pfizer vaccine for emergency use for children ages 5-11 earlier this week. The CDC is meeting on Tuesday, November 2, for their review of the data. In anticipation of their approval mid-next week, WES has scheduled an optional on-site vaccination clinic on Saturday, November 6, time TBD, for eligible WES students. You will receive an email to register for a particular time slot after the vaccine has received formal CDC approval.
You are invited to join a Zoom meeting to discuss the test-to-stay program and the vaccination clinic at 4:30 p.m. today via THIS LINK or at noon on Monday, November 1, via THIS LINK. The meetings will be recorded, and the recordings will be available on the COVID-19 Resource Board in the Parent Portal.
We will be in touch later today with more information about the test-to-stay program.
Sincerely,
