Although Asheville City Schools will no longer require daily symptom screenings, we are asking families and staff to self monitor for COVID-19 symptoms. . Parents, please talk to your child about the importance of keeping our schools as safe and healthy as possible. Many of you have reached out to us for information about options for Covid testing, and we are doing our best to get back to you as soon as possible. Despite the time away from school, please reach out to your schools COVID coordinator if you or your family members are exposed to COVID or test positive and find yourself in need of support. Shannon Auten, the current Principal of Innovative High School, will serve as the Director of Student Services. We will continue to remind spectators of these protocols upon their arrival and throughout the game. As we shared with you earlier in the week, Asheville City Schools is no longer excluding staff or students from school if they have beenexposedto COVID-19. Fall is in the air! You can also request a free at-home COVID-19 test to be mailed to your home from NCDHHS and Labcorp throughhttps://www.ondemand.labcorp.com/nc. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. The districts stance remains thatif you are sick or believe you may be sick, please stay home to support us in stopping the spread. All vaccine types, including adolescent boosters and pediatric series, will be available. The list of COVID-19 symptoms has also expanded. Press the question mark key to get the keyboard shortcuts for changing dates. It will be on June 10, 2022. PDF Important Dates 2015-2016 Specific details about Plan A begin on page 6 of the Toolkit linked above. We encourage our staff and students over the age 12 to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Board members were also reminded of COVID-19 symptoms. Chloe A. Akers, J.D. This update now includes household exposures. We will continue to have masks available at all ACS schools for staff and students who choose to wear a face-covering and for individuals returning on days 6 thru 10 after testing positive for COVID-19, or after being exposed to COVID-19 as face coverings are still considered to be an important part of the multi-layered prevention strategy along with: Families and staff are encouraged to learn more about this change in procedure on pages 6 & 7 in theStrongSchoolsNC Toolkit. . Per the. _________________________________________________________________________________________. The campus sits on 300 acres (120 ha) amid the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains and currently enrolls 295 students in grades nine through twelve. Per the Toolkit, guests, staff, and students have the option to wear face coverings while outside; however, it is not required. We are closely monitoring updates, as guidance is changing frequently due to local and global developments. All tests that result in a positive diagnosis are reported to the state and to BCHHS. Also, one important thing to note is that a prior infection in the past 90 days no longer exempts an individual from quarantine (this is because prior infection is not protective against omicron). If held indoors, ensure consistent mask use and 6-feet physical distancing between students (Toolkit Page 11). . It was great to have our staff and students back in school today! And, face coverings will be a standing item on meeting agendas for the foreseeable future. This message is intended for the families and staff of Asheville City Schools. As you can see in the table below, we have 13 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 inACS. Asheville is one of the U.S. News and World Report 's Best Places to Live in the U.S. (2022-23), Yelp's #1 Foodie City in the U.S. (2022), and Livability's #19 Top 100 Best Places to Live in America (2022). As always, thank you for all you do to make ourcommunitystronger. Schedules | Beaufort County Community College Vaccinated individuals with mild symptoms are testing positive of COVID-19 within the ACScommunityas well, so we all need to do our part to keep each other healthy and in the classroom. Based on the StrongSchoolsNC Toolkits most recent update, Asheville City Schools is no longer excluding staff or students from school if they have been exposed to COVID-19. Socorro ISD: July 31. ***REMINDER*** ACS is unable to accept home test results. Thank you for supporting our efforts to keep our students and staff as healthy as possible. Thank you for your grace and understanding as we work together to keep our Cougar Family safe. Medical providers, public health experts, and parents will be hosting aLets Talk Town Hallabout COVID-19 vaccines for 5 - 11-year-olds next Tuesday, November 9th @ 5:30 PM. The second test can be carried out by your local healthcare provider or at no charge at any Asheville City Schools facility. Senior Photos, Cougar Step-Up, Open House. The school COVID Coordinators, School Nurse, and School Leadership will make this determination. Facebook (opens in new window/tab) Twitter (opens in new window/tab) Instagram (opens in new window/tab) YouTube (opens in new window/tab) LinkedIn (opens in new window/tab) Apple (opens in new window/tab) Comments (-1) You're online. Its also very important to remember that if your child is waiting for COVID-19 test results or is in quarantine (regardless of whether their close contact occurred at school or in thecommunity), they shouldNOTcome to school. There are multiple testing options available for Cougar families to stay home and stay safe. Yesterday, we were informed that one of our afterschool programs deemed several of our ACS students as close contacts to an individual who tested positive for COVID-19. Were happy that students are back in the classroom and will continue to do everything we can to keep our students and staff safe and healthy. The district is supporting their decision-making. As a reminder, if your child has been tested for COVID-19 and is waiting on their results, they should not come to school. Day. There are many community testing options available for Cougar families to stay home and stay safe. Placements are not based on a first-come, first-serve basis. Best Asheville Schools | Asheville, NC School Ratings | Best Schools Counseling / 11th Grade - Asheville City Schools In addition to the fewer late starts, the 2021-2022 calendar has one additional Optional Teacher Workday. Liturgies for Beginning and Closing the Internship. At Asheville Middle School, we believe public health is a shared responsibility, and its one were taking seriously. Volusia Schools 2023-24 calendar. April Dockery, ACS Executive Director of Crisis Management and Operations. Therefore, in alignment with the Boards February 14th decision, face coverings will continue to be universally required for all students, staff, and visitors while in our school buildings and on our buses. Here is list of important dates to nish up this year : May 26th: Exams for year-long classes begin . Surrounded by woods, our historic campus offers 350,000 total square feet of academic, athletic, residential, and specialty activity facilities along with athletic fields, outdoor learning areas, and hiking . If you have any questions about our districts health protocols, please email me atapril.dockery@acsgmail.net. As we have in the past, and will continue to do, we strive to keep you updated as we all navigate through this pandemic. Early College - Henderson County Public Schools GOOD NEWS!!! Spring Break is right around the corner! However,the person must continue to wear a mask for 10 days after the first day of symptoms to minimize the risk of infecting others. All vaccine administration at40 Coxe Avenuewill take place Tuesday - Friday from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM. As we continue to see a rise in positive COVID-19 cases within our community, we ask that you continue to inform school staff if you know your child has been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19, keep your child home from school and follow public health guidance to stop the spread. To find a testing location within our community visit,www.NCDHHS.gov/gettested. It will take place from 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM at the following locations: As always thank you for all you do to make our community stronger. Please continue to reach out to me, any of our school leaders, and/or our COVID Coordinators (Contact information below). 2021 - 2022 Back to School Safety Updates - Asheville City Schools 10 /10. You can find more information about upcoming vaccine events in our community, Back to School Safety Protocols were the sole topic during todays Special Called Meeting of the Asheville City Board of Education. Even while in the lunch line, students should continue to follow districtwide physical distancing protocols. At Ira B. Jones, we believe public health is a shared responsibility, and its one were taking seriously. In addition to pediatric doses, all three vaccines will be available if other family members need a first dose, second dose, orbooster. We continue to see a decline in the number of positive cases of COVID-19 and our number of students in quarantine. BCHHS will also support pediatric administration by modifying operations at40 Coxe Avenuein Downtown Asheville. We apologize for the late notice, but when the opportunity presented itself to host a vaccine clinic prior to the first day of school, we were quick to take it - especially after our local health department shared earlier today that our countys positivity rate is up to 8.5%. Vaccinations are the leading public health prevention strategy to end the COVID-19 pandemic. So, were highly encouraging all North Carolinians ages 12 and up who have not received the vaccine to make plans to attend tomorrows clinic. Lets resolve to keep our entire Cougar family safe in the New Year byProperly Wearing Face Coverings Over the Mouth AND NOSE AT ALL TIMES. If you have any questions about our districts health protocols, please email me atapril.dockery@acsgmail.net. I hope this message finds you well. Best Times to Visit Asheville, NC | U.S. News Travel Additionally, as shared in the, Face coverings remain an important line of defense for both vaccinated and unvaccinated students and faculty. Office of the Public Defender: (828) 259-3423. ***Vaccines will be available to all eligibleACSstudents, families, and staff. This update now includes household exposures. Please know, we are seeing the effects of this community spread in our district, as more positive cases appeared in schools this week. Asheville City Schools onsite testing program is considered a lab, so please, do not hesitate to reach out to your schools COVID Coordinator for testing at the first sign of COVID-19 symptoms. COVID TESTING:There are many community testing options available for Cougar families to stay home and stay safe. Performance & security by Cloudflare. During tonight's meeting, the Asheville City Board of Education approved an Amended 2021-2022 School Calendar. Language. Asheville-based Summit Search Solutions Inc. was unanimously chosen from a pool of seven applicants on Feb. 13, with the proposals weeded down to three at the school board's Feb. 6 work. Activities. 97 0 obj
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Students and/or their parents can provide Asheville City Schools with a positive test result from a local healthcare provider or certified testing site to allow for confirmation of a positive case. Please know close contacts to the confirmed positive cases have been identified, and school administrators and nurses have already called families personally impacted by the cluster. PDF Mportant Dates 2018-2019 ***REMINDER: If your student has symptoms of COVID, they need a negative lab-confirmed COVID test or an alternative diagnosis from their health care provider to return to school. We believe families and staff should know how COVID-19 is impacting their school campus. I have truly enjoyed time with my family and friends this winter break but I am excited to welcome our staff and students back next week. %PDF-1.7
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Once the test is performed parents/guardians will be notified of the results and no student will be tested without permission either written or over the phone. Pleasewatch the recorded meetingto hear more from our panel of experts. We will resume publishing our weekly data update next Thursday, January 13th. The, **For Staff and Students who are unvaccinated and have been deemed close contact, Asheville City Schools does not offer the CDC option of an asymptomatic individual providing a negative test result after 5-7 days to shorten quarantine times. South Carolina Obstetrical and Gynecological Society - Annual Meeting If you have a COVID question or need support, please reach out to your medical care provider. been in close contact with the confirmed cases. Faculty & Staff Directory - Asheville School Good Evening Students, Staff and Families. Image courtesy of the Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce. No appointments are necessary. As part of Asheville City Schools protocols, the school has undergone a systematic cleaning, andoperations at Asheville Middle School will continue as usual. 0:44. If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19 with an at-home test kit that was NOT prescribed/ordered by a healthcare provider or from an at-home specimen collection kit that was sent to a lab for testing (like Pixel by LabCorp), Asheville City Schools is requiring a second test to confirm the diagnosis. Parents will also be promptly notified should there ever be a cluster, which the CDC identifies as five or more confirmed cases within a 14-day period with a potential connection in time and place, on their childs campus. All important dates and events can be found on the Calendars page of our website: As always thank you for all you do to make our community stronger, Cougar Pride! If you have any questions about our districts health protocols, please email me atapril.dockery@acsgmail.net. AprilDockery, ACS Executive Director of Crisis Management and Operations, Ashley-Michelle Thublin, ACS Executive Director of Communications. Provide dedicated time for staff to meet in Professional Learning Communities including but not limited to Content Teams, Vertical Planning teams, or Grade Level Teams. The Big List of School Holidays and Special Days To Celebrate in 2023-2024 From Labor Day to summer break and everything in between! Thank you for your grace and understanding as we work together to keep our Cougar Family safe. Reminder, if your student has any COVID-19 symptoms, has tested positive for COVID, is waiting on a lab-confirmed test, or has been exposed to an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19, please useAsheville City Schools COVID Reporting Formlinked here and also available on each schools homepage and your schools COVID Coordinator will contact you. This event will also be interpreted into American Sign Language. Thisupdateprovides new guidance for isolation and quarantine which aligns with theupdatedguidancefrom Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Similar to Buncombe County, our district has seen an uptick in positive cases this week. These numbers reflect the total number of students who have met certain criteria, fall into one of 3 categories, and have been excluded from school due to COVID-19 during the 7 day period. The best time to visit Asheville, North Carolina - Lonely Planet As these guidelines are updated at the state level, ACS will make adjustments. The 2023 State of the Schools address will be held at New Hope Elementary School on Tuesday, July 25. Regarding communication, please know our COVID team will continue to notify students and staff who have been exposed. Please check back regularly for any amendments that may occur, or consult the Asheville City Schools website for their 2022-2023 approved calendar and 2023-2024 approved calendar. Based on the unique needs of their building and the number of school nutrition staff members on their campus, principals have created their own transition plans to ensure all students, Kindergarten - 12th Grade, are going through the lunch line. We are all working diligently to address each family's unique circumstances and offer support in a timely manner. Like school districts across the state, Asheville City Schools is anticipating a new shipment of COVID-19 antigen tests from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. If a student or staff member has symptoms or tests positive they will continue to be excluded from school until they meet the criteria to return. TheStrong Schools NC K-12 Toolkitwas updated again on 01/07/2021. As a follow-up to previous communications, please know that school and district leaders continue to review staff and student COVID numbers each day. If your child is identified as a close contact and IS fully vaccinated, they can return to school the next day if they have no symptoms and are able to provide proof of vaccination. These numbers willnotreflect students or staff who tested positive on an at-home rapid test; however, those students are reflected in the exclusion count, along with those exposed in the community who were excluded for one or more days. - April Dockery, ACS Executive Director of Crisis Management and Operations, - Ashley-Michelle Thublin, ACS Executive Director of Communications, To align with the guidance of theStrongSchools Toolkit, students and staff members who are exposed to COVID-19 at school (in classrooms, other in-school settings, extracurricular activities, including athletic activities and school transportation) will no longer need to quarantine when masks are worn consistently and correctly by both individuals. Currently supporting secondary schools are, Asheville City Schools continues to take all precautions consistent with the CDC and Buncombe County Health Department guidelines. 35% are fully vaccinated. The panel also talked through possible scenarios (such as a student tests positive for COVID-19 and is able to complete their school work) and how the district would provide support while they were away. If your student has symptoms of COVID, they need a negative lab-confirmed COVID test or an alternative diagnosis from their health care provider to return to school. Dec. 24 to Jan. 4. Additionally, please note that per the February 14th Board of Education vote, face coverings continue to be universally required in our school buildings and on our buses. The new calendar has four fewer late starts for secondary students. The health and safety discussion began around 45 minutes into the meeting. Additionally, please know that the NCDHHS currently updates its Child Care or School Setting with an Ongoing Cluster dashboard each Tuesday at 4:00 PM. Home Important Dates Annual Meeting Annual Meeting 77th Annual Meeting September 15 - 17, 2023 Omni Grove Park Inn Asheville, NC Tim Harkins, MD, President of the SC Ob/Gyn Society, and Dawn Bingham, MD, Chair of the SC Section of ACOG present our distinguished speakers.