teacher and principal evaluations (tpe)
TRANSCRIPT
AGENDA
• Meet the Contact Tracing Team
• Purpose, Priorit ies, and Key Information
• Vaccine / Testing Program
• COVID Information, Mitigation, & Best Practices
• What does contact tracing look l ike?
• Q&A
AACPS AthleticsCOVID Information for Winter Coaches
2021-2022
Meet the Contact Tracing Team• Bob Mosier – AACPS Director of Communications
• Kate Gilbert – AACPS Contact Tracing Lead• [email protected]
• Jim Foran – AACPS Contact Tracing-Athletics• [email protected]
• Isha Alston – DoH Nursing Supervisor• [email protected]
• Clayton Culp – AACPS Coordinator of Athletics• [email protected]
• Mamie and Carl Perkins – Project Managers, Athletics Testing• [email protected]• [email protected]
• Most up to date contact tracing information• www.aacps.org/contacttracing
Purpose, Priorities, & HighlightsThe winter season has endured the most significant impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Our entire focus is on starting and completing this season with as few disruptions to teams as possible.
The AACPS COVID-19 vaccine attestation and testing program is in place to help us accomplish that goal. We recognize that some people do not agree with the program. However, participation in athletics is a privilege, not a right. Those who do not adhere this program will not be able to participate.
Purpose, Priorities, & HighlightsIn order to accomplish our goal all adult leaders in our program must remain(1) engaged and informed (2) diligent in the application of mitigation strategies(3) flexible, knowing that things will change as we go.
While we care about all stakeholders, decisions will be made with the best interests of student-athletes and program continuation as the top priorities. Your AD, administration, the Contact Tracing Team, and Central Office staff are here to support you in any way that we can. Please don’t hesitate to ask questions when you have them. This is truly a group effort!Please take some time to speak with a fall coach in your program who has been through the contact tracing process.
Purpose, Priorities, & HighlightsCurrent mitigation highlights – more to comeMaskingRequired indoors when not physically active. Student-athletes may remove them during practice/game
play. Coaches must keep them on. Recommended outdoors when social distancing is an option, but not a requirement.Always required on busses. Indoor masking is also a requirement when a vaccinated person is deemed a close contact.
When student-athletes are under your care and are in a stagnant, static state keep them socially distanced at 6 feet or more whenever it is feasible to do so. This includes sidelines/pool decks/etc. Close contact designation is primarily determined based on stagnant, static time when student-
athletes are not actively engaged in practice or game play. The determination is based on being within 6 feet of each other for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period.
Purpose, Priorities, & HighlightsCurrent mitigation highlights – more to come No shared water sources.Minimize numbers and time in lockers rooms. Consider rotations. Have locker assignments available for contact tracing. Spread out in busses as much as possible. Ride in the same seat both ways. Self-transportation is an option for any family who can do that and can be encouraged. However, carpooling is also not encouraged. When on bus rides, coaches are asked to take pictures of students for contact tracing purposes.
Vaccination & Testing Program• Effective Monday, November 22, 2021
• Requires SAs and Coaches to be fully vaccinated or submit to weekly testing
• “Fully vaccinated” is 14 days past final dose
• Booster shots not required; do not play into calculation
• Must attest to vaccination status online
Vaccination & Testing Program• Anyone not attesting to full vaccination (either indicating lack
of vaccination or failing to attest) will be considered unvaccinated and must test weekly
• Families of SAs do not submit vaccination document
• Coaches should not collect vaccination document
Vaccination & Testing Program• Consequences for SAs who knowingly falsify attestation or
coaches and other team or school personnel who knowingly allow any falsification
• Student-athletes: Range from warning to dismissal from program
• Coaches, team and school personnel: Range from warning to termination
Vaccination & Testing Program• Testing will be done at schools;
• Off-campus testing allowable for staff/coaches
• Still discussing whether to allow off-campus testing
• School staff will receive notification of any positive tests and anyone who does not test
• Positive tests must isolate; contact tracing process to ensue
• Those who fail to test are ineligible to practice or play
COVID Information, Mitigation,
and Best Practices
November 4, 2021
Types of cases• Positive: Lab-confirmed (rapid or PCR test)
• Probable: Symptomatic person who is close contact of positive case
• Symptomatic: Displaying 1 or more symptoms without outside cause
• Note: AACPS does not accept results of a home rapid test, but does accept a home PCR test (a home PCR test is read by a medical professional and entered into state database; a home rapid test is not)
Contact Tracing Team• Works in collaboration with Anne Arundel County
Department of Health
• Utilizes guidelines and criteria from the CDC, Maryland Department of Health, and Anne Arundel County Department of Health
• Investigates to identify any close contacts
• Determines quarantine status of close contacts as necessary
• Detailed questioning to keep your teams up and running
Exposure period• Symptomatic person
• 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms
• Asymptomatic person
• 48 hours prior to the date test was taken (not results)
• Example: COVID-positive person has symptoms on Monday, gets test on Tuesday; trace from Saturday (48 hrs. prior to Monday) through last contact with AACPS students/staff
• Tracing period could be longer in some cases
Symptoms are any ONE of these:• fever of 100.4 degrees or higher
• sore throat
• cough
• difficulty breathing
• diarrhea or vomiting
• new onset of severe headache (especially with fever)
• new loss of taste or smell
Symptoms are any ONE of these:• For those with chronic conditions, symptoms should represent
a change from the baseline
• This makes it important to urge families to get medical condition paperwork for students to the school as soon as possible and preferably prior to the first day of class
Symptomatic persons must: • Not go to school or work or take part in a school-sponsored
activity until they get a negative test or another medical diagnosis
• Not go to school or work or take part in a school-sponsored activity until they are symptom-free
• Not go to school or work or take part in a school-sponsored activity if they are awaiting the results of an initial test
• Exception for negative rapid and pending PCR tests
Close Contacts• With limited exceptions, those within 6 feet of COVID-positive
person for 15 total minutes over a 24-hour period.
• Minutes are aggregate, not necessarily consecutive
• Masking helps with decreasing spread but wearing one does not alter the 6-foot contact tracing distances in athletics.
• If we can’t rule contacts out, we must rule them in.
• Knowing where students/adults are is critical
• Consider parental help where practical
Close Contacts – One Exclusion• Students only, in indoor classroom setting only
• In K-12 indoor classroom setting, the “close contact” definition excludes students who were within 3 to 6 feet of infected student where both students were engaged in consistent and correct use of well-fitting masks; and other K-12 school prevention strategies … were in place in the K-12 school setting.”
• Does not apply to adults (close contacts or COVID-positive)
Close Contacts – Key Exception• Applies only to classrooms
• Does not apply to gymnasiums
• Does not apply to cafeterias
• Does not apply to school buses
• Does not apply to athletic team meetings in classrooms
• It will not apply to athletics teams in almost any setting, so honor spacing guidelines in chalk talk, film, and/or tutoring sessions
Instruction: Classroom Exclusion Applies
Athletics Team: Classroom Exclusion Does Not Apply
Isolation and Quarantine• COVID-Positive case: Isolate 10 days
• Quarantine for close contacts: 10 days, except:
• Quarantine can end after 7 days (return on next day) if:
• Quarantined person is asymptomatic
• Quarantined person tests between Day 5 and Day 7
• Test is negative
• Must produce results of negative test to school
Isolation and Quarantine• Asymptomatic close contacts who are post-14 days fully
vaccinated do not have to quarantine but:
• Must wear mask in all public indoor settings for 14 days
• Recommended COVID test 3-5 days after exposure
• Can cease masking (outside AACPS) with negative test
Isolation and Quarantine• Asymptomatic persons who have had COVID-19 within last 90
days, regardless of vaccination status, will not have to quarantine
• We will require documentation of vaccination or past COVID status to apply non-quarantine exception
• Employees/families can go to https://md.myir.net to download proof
• Do not collect vaccination cards; you just need to see document
Isolation and Quarantine
Quarantine Timeline• Quarantine starts on day after date of last exposure
• Example:
• Last exposure: November 1
• Quarantine starts: November 2 (Day 1)
• 10-day quarantine ends: November 11
• SA can test on/after: November 6 (Day 5)
• SA can end quarantine early: November 8
• SA can return to school/Athletics: November 9-12** November 9-11 with negative test and early end to quarantine; November 12 with full 10-day quarantine
Masking• Masks (face coverings) mandatory in all MD school facilities
• Face coverings are defined as:• a material that covers the nose and mouth to prevent respiratory
droplets from being expelled into the air and that:
• (a) is secured to the head, including with ties or ear loops;
• (b) fits snugly but comfortably against the side of the face; and
• (c) is either manufactured or homemade and is a solid piece of material without slits, exhalation valves, or punctures.
Masking• Masking helps curtail the spread of COVID-19 in instances
where well-fitted masks are worn properly
• Per federal and state guidelines, masks must be worn by all people at all times when on a school bus. This includes trips to games and scrimmages.
• In contact tracing, whether or not a student-athlete has a mask does not change the close contact bubble. This does not mean student-athletes should not wear masks. They should do so to help prevent spread of the virus.
How Do I Best Protect My Team?• Spacing, spacing, spacing
• As far as you can as often as you can
• 6 feet (wingspan plus a step distance is good start)
• Take accurate attendance at all times
• Demonstrate spacing for student-athletes (SAs) to visualize
• Use cones, discs, hula hoops etc., as spacers and have SAs stand on them
• SAs exiting competition space go to same spot every time
How Do I Best Protect My Team?• Gear spaced at mark places (6 feet apart)
• Individual water at marked places with gear
• Water breaks as needed (not all at once)
• Pay attention to situations where students are gathered and stagnant
• Sidelines, bleachers/stands, locker rooms
How Do I Best Protect My Team?• Pay attention to bus seating
• Take photo of bus seat arrangement (do not share or post)
• Same seats to and from away contests
• No eating on the bus or in team meetings (increases chance of spread)
• Encourage SAs not to share rides to/from practices/games
• Encourage SAs not to gather in groups outside of practice, particularly in tight spaces outdoors.
How Do I Best Protect My Team?• Jerseys with numbers to identify players (avoid plain shirts)
• Maintain spacing during arrival, dismissal, halftime and end-of-session talks
• Create and save a written practice plan
• Maintain all records for one week after practice/game
• Practice in cohorts to minimize number of contacts
• Keep SAs with same partners whenever possible
How Do I Best Protect My Team?• Stagger lines/rows in bleachers whenever possible
SA SA SA SA SA
SA SA SA SA
• Even better:
SA SA SA SA SA
empty row
SA SA SA SA
2 Particularly Vulnerable Areas• Bleachers
• Rows are about 2-3 feet apart
• Contact tracing will be 6 foot circle around positive SA
• Bus seats
• Seats are about 2-3 feet apart; no one in seat behind driver
• Students directly in front of and behind positive SA will be close contact
• Keep students on window sides where possible
Communication:• COVID-19 dashboard (www.aacps.org/coviddashboard) is
updated each weekday morning
• Letters posted at www.aacps.org/covidschoolletters for positive cases
• Schools will contact families of close contacts
• Communications Office will inform school families
• We will need a spreadsheet with all SAs names and Student ID numbers. Once your team is established, please compile that ASAP so it is ready if needed.
AACPS AthleticsCOVID Information for Winter Coaches
2021-2022
Q&A