Last summer, the Iola school district decided to try a new program they hoped would allow students to stay in school rather than quarantine every time a classmate had COVID-19.
That “Test to Stay and Learn” policy has helped as many as 102 students at once remain in school when they otherwise would have been quarantined at home.
Now, the CDC is recommending school districts across the country follow a similar policy.
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released reports indicating the effectiveness of “Test to Stay (TTS)” policies. The agency recommends “a layered approach” that combines masks, physical distancing, good sanitation and hygiene practices, and screening measures.
“While implementation of TTS may vary, contact tracing and testing as well as masking of contacts during their in-school quarantine period are integral to minimize risk of transmission,” the CDC report states.
In Kansas, some school districts offered Test to Stay pilot programs in May and June, but the number of active COVID-19 cases at that time had dropped. By July, the delta variant would result in a surge of cases.
That prompted USD 257 Superintendent Stacey Fager to ask board members to approve a policy following the guidelines developed by state education officials, based on results from those pilot programs.
The board agreed, unsure what the school year would bring but eager for an option that would allow students to remain in school for in-person learning as much as possible.
“This has helped us stay in school, especially at times when other districts were having short-term cancellations and elevated cases,” Fager said.
“I’m really glad to see the CDC is really pushing that.”
How it works
Under the program, the state uses federal funds to pay for nurses to work at a school district to conduct COVID tests for students and staff.
In USD 257’s case, the Community Health Center of Southeast Kansas provides two nurses at no cost to the district. The district wrote a grant that will allow CHCSEK to add a third staff member for data collection.
Under the policy, a student can remain in school even when exposed to someone at school who tested positive for COVID-19. Students exposed within their home settings will now quarantine for five days, down from 10.
Students who choose not to be tested will quarantine at home.
