The District 67 COVID-19 Dashboard has been updated for the week of March 15, 2021, to reflect the latest information from our schools and local health departments. As of March 17, 2021, the incidence rate for Lake County is 8.9 percent. The incidence rate for the 60045 zip code is 9.5 percent. The seven-day rolling average for Lake County from the CDC (the most current) for new cases on March 16, 2021 was 91.3 percent and the test positivity rate was 3.72 percent. With the exception of a very small decrease in the Lake County incidence rate, all other indicators increased over the past several days.
Travel Guidance
There are no mandatory quarantine expectations for either domestic or international travel, as communicated in previous updates. These guidelines are for travel, but we continue to encourage everyone to adhere to the 3W’s whether you travel or not.
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If you are traveling over Spring Break and adhere to the 3W’s, students may return to school.
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If you do not adhere to the 3W’s, the LCHD recommends the following:
- Quarantine for 10-days,
- Obtain a COVID-19 rt-PCR test 5-7 days after your return, and
- Continue to quarantine for 10-days even if an individual tests negative.
The LCHD travel guidance (p.22) supersedes that of the CDC, which recommends a shorter quarantine (7-days and obtain negative test) for travelers.
Self-certification Changes
Two questions on the self-certification screener changed as of March 15. The links for each school remain the same; however, you may need to refresh the link to update the questions. If your child screens out, please contact the School Nurse or Principal for follow-up and guidance. Individuals returning from international travel may be asked to provide evidence of the negative PCR test results prior to returning to the building.
Covid-19 Testing Now Voluntary Following Spring Break
On March 16, 2021, the District 67 Board of Education approved the Administration’s recommendation to remain in the hybrid in-person instructional model for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year and to move forward with mandatory COVID-19 testing following Spring Break.
Since then, we have received feedback from the community and further discussed as an administrative team. As a result, and with support from the District 67 Board of Education, we have determined that COVID-19 testing following Spring Break will no longer be mandatory, but strongly encouraged.
Voluntary Covid-19 Testing Registration
COVID-19 testing allows us to identify asymptomatic individuals early; reducing the potential spread of the virus, and limiting the number of individuals who may need to quarantine. In combination with our other mitigation efforts, COVID-19 testing can help us open schools following Spring Break and keep them open.
With this in mind, we are strongly encouraging all District 67 students to participate in COVID-19 testing during the week of March 29-April 2 to avoid the spread of the virus in our buildings following Spring Break.
Students may sign up for a (1) one-time test during that week, or (2) continue with weekly surveillance testing starting the week of March 29th for the remainder of the school year. Testing will be conducted using the Abbott BinaxNOW antigen test as a screener. If positive, a second test will be conducted to confirm the initial positive result.
Looking Ahead
Our staff, students, and families have been incredibly resilient over the past year. There was no playbook for navigating a pandemic in our schools when we closed. Over the course of the past 12 months, countless dedicated educators and community members have donated time, expertise, and guidance to collaborate and make many difficult, and at times, polarizing decisions. As we enter the last quarter of the school year and start to see glimpses of what our lives were like before the pandemic began, we hope as a school community we can shift our focus to what we all share in common - caring deeply for our children and their education.
Wishing everyone a relaxing and safe Spring Break!
