SE Illinois News

Carmi-White County High School issued the following announcement on July 14

C-WC #5 School Community:

Carmi-White County CUSD #5 is looking forward to returning to a more normal 2021-2022 school year. We realize that parents, students, and staff have many questions and concerns as we prepare for the beginning of school. The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) has fully adopted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated guidance for schools released on July 9. We are grateful that the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) has adopted this guidance and currently allows elected boards of education local control. 

We are proud that C-WC #5 successfully navigated the 2020-2021 school year by having students in attendance 5 days a week with no interruptions during the year. This could not have been accomplished without the support from staff, students, parents, community, and the Egyptian Health Department. The Unit #5 board of education and administration ask for everyone’s assistance as we prepare for the upcoming year and adhere to the layered strategies that will allow us to keep our students and staff safe and healthy.

C-WC #5 Board of Education, administration and the local health department will monitor community transmission, vaccination coverage, screening testing, and occurrence of outbreaks to guide decisions on the level of layered prevention strategies. We encourage all eligible students and staff to get vaccinated. At this time, per ISBE, remote instruction will only be made available for non-vaccinated or vaccine-ineligible students who are under quarantine as directed by the local health department or IDPH.

Carmi-White County CUSD #5 schools will operate in accordance with the CDC’s updated (July 9, 2021) Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools. These guidelines include the following:

• Masks are recommended but not required at this time. 
• Unless exempt by CDC order, passengers and drivers must wear a mask on school transportation.
• Maintain 3 feet of social distancing as much as possible. 
• Additional cleaning and disinfection will be utilized.
• Handwashing and respiratory etiquette will be maintained.
• Contact tracing, quarantine, and isolation will be directed by the health department.
• Monitor daily symptom checking.
• BinaxNow or Shield Testing will only be utilized with parental permission.
• Optional vaccination clinics will be offered to eligible staff and students.

In the event of a rise in positive COVID-19 cases in our community, the C-WC #5 board of education and administration, in consultation with the local public health department, will utilize community-based student and staff data to implement appropriate layered mitigation strategies.

Original source can be found here.