Dear Staff, Parents and Community Members:

Over the last 24 hours, we have been notified of several staff and students who have tested positive for COVID-19 or have quarantined due to being in close contact with someone who has tested positive.  Below is a breakdown of these cases.

• At the Barrows Elementary School, we have had one staff member test positive.  This staff member was remote this week so there have been no in school close contacts or staff or students who have to be quarantined.
• At the Birch Meadow Elementary School, we have had one staff member test positive.  This staff member was in school this week.  Through our contact tracing procedures, we identified the staff and students who were potentially in close contact with the staff member.  Those who were potentially in close contact are in the process of being contacted by the school nurse, Director of Nurses, and building principal.
• At the Wood End Elementary School, we have had two staff members test positive.  These staff members did not have any close contact with students.  Through our contact tracing procedures, we identified staff members who were potentially in close contact and those staff members have been notified.
• At Reading Memorial High School, one student has tested positive.  That student is remote this week and did not have in school contact with staff or students.

Using our cleaning and disinfecting protocol, the impacted classrooms and spaces at the schools were disinfected as part of our regular extensive misting disinfection and were not used for over 12 hours.

Recently, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated their definition of close contact to include someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated.  In school settings, close contacts include being in a classroom, in other school spaces, on the bus, or at an extra-curricular activity.  Contact tracing with the individuals who tested positive is ongoing, and any close contacts in the schools have been notified and will be followed up by the Reading Board of Health.  As a result of contract tracing of the above cases, 14 students and 5 staff had to be quarantined. At this time, we have not received any reports of other students or staff members experiencing illnesses with symptoms resembling those of coronavirus for this particular case.

We would also like to emphasize that none of the positive cases thus far have been transmitted in school.  We want to thank our students, staff, and administrators for creating and establishing a safe and healthy learning environment in our schools.

For those staff and students who have to quarantine, we are currently following the Massachusetts Department of Public Health guidelines, not the recently updated CDC guidelines.  The MDPH guidelines are as follows:

• You will need to remain quarantined for:
• at least 14 days from the date of last exposure; or
• at least 10 days, provided all of the following are satisfied:
  • you have not had, and do not have, any symptoms;
  • you are tested on day 8 of your quarantine period or later using a molecular diagnostic test (e.g., polymerase chain reaction (PCR)) to detect the presence of the virus;
  • you receive a negative test result; and
  • you monitor yourself for symptoms for the full 14 days. If you develop symptoms you should contact your health care provider and be re-tested.

COVID-19 is thought to be spread via person-to-person contact through contaminated air droplets from coughing and sneezing by an infected person. As with controlling the spread of other viruses, we urge everyone to take the following preventive measures both inside and outside of school.  It should be emphasized that it is not one mitigation strategy but a combination of all these strategies taken together that will substantially reduce the risk of transmission.

• Staff must monitor themselves for symptoms daily and students, with the assistance of families, must also be monitored daily for symptoms. Staff and students must stay home if feeling unwell.
• Masks are among the most important single measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. We require all students and staff to wear masks that adequately cover both their nose and mouth. Exceptions must be made for students with medical, behavioral, or other challenges who are unable to wear masks/face coverings.

• Hand hygiene is critical. Students and staff are required to exercise hand hygiene (handwashing or sanitizing) upon arrival to school, before eating, before putting on and taking off masks, and before dismissal. Handwashing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds is the best practice. However, hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol should be substituted when handwashing is not available.
• Physical distance greatly reduces the risk of transmission. Physical distancing is a critical tool in preventing the spread of COVID-19. The CDC(1) and DPH(2) recommend 6 feet of distance between individuals.
• Cohorts/assigned seating. Students organized in groups/classrooms and other cohorts help mitigate transmission of the virus. Assigned seating is important because it effectively creates even smaller groups within cohorts which minimize transmission. Assigned seats can also assist with contact tracing. Wherever possible, seats should be assigned (including classroom, bus, meals).

The symptoms of coronavirus are similar to the regular seasonal influenza and the single most important thing to do if any of the following symptoms are present is to STAY HOME.

• Fever (100.0° Fahrenheit or higher), chills, or shaking chills (CDC has lowered the temperature from 100.4 to 100.0)
• Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough)
• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Headache when in combination with other symptoms
• Muscle aches or body aches
• Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea
• Fatigue, when in combination with other symptoms
• Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies) when in combination with other symptoms

If staff or students have any of these symptoms, we encourage you to get a PCR COVID-19 test.  A list of test sites is available here, and Massachusetts also has an interactive testing map. Staff and students who have symptoms should also contact their primary care physician for further instructions.  In addition, if a parent of a child tests positive, please notify the school and quarantine your child to avoid coming in close contact with others and get him or her tested.

We are closely monitoring this situation and will provide you with any further updates, if necessary. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

John F. Doherty

Superintendent of Schools