Good Afternoon LNC Families,
We hope you enjoyed your winter break and are refreshed as we return to school tomorrow. Prior to returning, we need to remind you of our COVID-19 mitigation measures and to inform you of recent changes to the StrongSchools NC Public Health Toolkit, which provides health and safety guidance for K-12 schools in North Carolina.
Our first and foremost goal is to reduce infection spread so our students can learn in the most optimal environment possible– in-person, at school. Bearing that in mind, we open this second semester with increased commitment to our multilayered protective measures. These include wearing well-fitted masks, reporting any COVID-19 symptoms, cases and exposures to our health staff immediately, monitoring our local infection data, employing testing as needed, increased sanitation and more. Please review LNC’s Health & Safety Protocols, found on our website under the COVID-19 section, for exhaustive information. Each of these safety protocols, and our families’ support of them, plays a critical role in keeping our school doors open.
Two of these measures take on an even greater importance as infection levels in our community rise. First, please ensure your student is wearing their mask as they exit their vehicle and have an extra one with them in case it is needed. Because of the proven effectiveness of masks on reducing virus spread and their ability to keep students learning in school, proper mask wearing is an absolute.
Second, keep your child home if he or she has tested positive for the virus, been exposed to someone who has tested positive or is experiencing ANY COVID-19 symptoms and immediately contact Ms. Shipman (MS/HS students) at 704/948-8600 x1200 or Nurse Denise (ES students) at 704/948-8600 x3108. Please take a moment to record those numbers in your phone in case you suddenly need them.
Next, to reflect new guidance from CDC and NCDHHS, the Toolkit reduced the number of days a student or staff member is required to quarantine if certain conditions are met. A full explanation of quarantine times based on many factors and conditions can be found in the StrongSchools NC Public Health Toolkit or in LNC’s Health & Safety Protocols. Please note, if your LNC student becomes exposed to or tests positive for COVID-19 OR displays COVID-19 symptoms, you will not need to interpret those quarantine requirements. Instead, your critical role will be to keep your child at home and notify Ms. Shipman (HS/MS) or Nurse Denise (ES) immediately. They will provide the guidance appropriate to your situation. However, it is crucial that you, as parents, understand that proper and consistent mask wearing and vaccination status may eliminate or reduce the need for your LNC student to miss school.
To that end, we are again providing vaccination clinics on a weekly basis at LNC’s main campus, beginning next Tuesday, January 11. These clinics are open to all eligible groups (5 years old+ for initial vaccination; 12 years old+ for boosters). We will continue to host the clinics at the MS Cafeteria every Tuesday through March 1. Again, a fully vaccinated, boosted (if eligible) student is allowed to stay in school if exposed to COVID-19.
It is everyone’s sincere hope that we will come out the other side of this pandemic soon and there is some evidence to suggest that may occur sooner rather than later. Until then, please join us in recommitting to our efforts to minimize spread so we may keep our students in school.
