Message to Families: COVID Safety Protocols Handbook is Available

What a busy week! Our schools and departments have been alive with activity and fabulous learning adventures. I have enjoyed visiting school staff meetings this week as we plan forward for the coming school year. 

As a reminder, earlier this week, families and staff received a link to our 2021-22 COVID-19 Safety Protocols handbook. This is a reference tool for families and staff so that we all understand our health and safety protocols and expectations. Please read through the information carefully so that we can work together to keep our students, staff and families safe. We will continue to monitor evolving pandemic data, the patterns of the new COVID variants, and the evolving state guidance, to weigh any impacts as we regularly update our planning and handbook as appropriate.

As we are following guidance from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) and the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), we are in the final stages of planning for COVID-19 batch testing for our students. We will have more information to share about this in the coming days including who will be tested, frequency of testing, any forms that need to be completed and more. We know that testing is an important layer of protection in preventing COVID-19 and it will be key in keeping our Northshore students and staff safe. I also want to remind you of our data dashboard, where you can stay up-to-date on positive COVID-19 cases in students and staff, as well as quarantine data. On the same page, you will find a graph that reflects transmission rates in King and Snohomish counties. 

Yesterday morning on our Northshore News streaming segment, Deputy Superintendent Duggan Harman joined me in reviewing many of the COVID safety protocols that will be in place at our schools. I hope you will take time to review our webpages and watch Northshore News for the most current information. 

As we prepare to welcome students back to buildings for the first day of school, we are excited to partner with the Northshore Schools Foundation in hosting a Back-to-School Fair from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. tomorrow, Saturday, Aug. 28 at Pop Keeney Stadium. This free community event offers families an opportunity to connect with District departments, find community resources, and more! There will be an on-site vaccine clinic for individuals who are 12 years or older. The vaccine clinic will offer the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for ages 12 or older and the Moderna vaccine for ages 18 or older. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted full approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID -19 vaccine for individuals ages 16 or older. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for individuals ages 12-15 is still operating under an Emergency Use Authorization. For planning purposes, we are asking those interested in being vaccinated to complete this interest form by 2 p.m. today, Aug. 27. A limited number of vaccine doses will be available for anyone who did not complete the interest form, so walk ups are welcome. Due to the expected number of attendees, face coverings are strongly recommended for all participants and attendees at the Back-to-School Fair regardless of vaccination status.  

And so, I will end with a thought from Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert Comic Strip; “Remember there's no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end.”  Let's flood our district and community with kindness in the coming days and weeks...

Warmest regards,

Michelle Reid, Ed.D.
Superintendent