As you prepare for the upcoming school year, here are some resources and guidance to help you prepare:
School Operations
- COVID-19 Regulatory Flexibility Framework Provisions – DPI
- A Classroom Closure Decision Tree – Sauk County Health Department
- Education Forward: Reopening Wisconsin Schools – Official DPI guidance.
- School Health Services Interim COVID-19 Infection Control and Mitigation Toolkit – DPI (updated August 10)
- Interim COVID-19 Infection Control and Mitigation Measures for Schools
- Returning to School After COVID-19 – DPI
- Reopening School Buildings Risk Assessment Tool – DPI
- COVID-19 Infection Control Checklist for K-12 Schools – DPI
- COVID-19 Planning Considerations: Guidance for School Re-entry – American Academy of Pediatrics
- Guidance For Childcare, Schools, & Youth Programs – Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Information From the US Department of Education
- Air Quality and HVAC System Information – Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
COVID-19 Testing
- Recommendations FAQs on Testing for Schools
- Determining Release from Isolation and Quarantine Cases and their Contacts in Day Care Settings or Schools
- Decision Tool for Individuals and Families – DHS
- Student and Staff Absence Tracking Template with Adjustable Fields – Sauk County Health Department
- Return to School Guide For Sick – Sauk County Health Department
Transportation
- Wisconsin Department of Transportation Bussing Guidance
- Interim COVID-19 Transportation Guidance – DPI
Food Service
Personal Protective Equipment, Face Masks, Cleaning
- PPE Considerations for Schools – DPI
- Cloth Face Coverings in Schools – DPI
- Handwashing Lesson Plans – DPI
- Flyer on Cloth Face mask for Families – WI Department of Health Services
Lesson Plan and Educational Resources
- Children’s Book About the Virus – National Child Traumatic Stress Network
- Arts Education School Operating Considerations – DPI
Employment Issues
EEOC Accommodation Guidance: For information on many important issues, including furloughs, layoffs, return to work, medical testing, and other accommodations in light of the pandemic and planning for reopening schools at some point in the future, see this new guidance from the EEOC.
A cautionary tale: Employers Require COVID Liability Waivers as Conflict Mounts Over Workplace Safety
Health and Cleaning Issues
Handwashing lesson plans here.
State Government Action
The Assembly Education Committee held a hearing June 24 on the issue of re-opening schools. The Committee Chairman, Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeld (R-Fond du Lac), invited WCRIS to bring principals to testify on what our schools are experiencing. Here is what WCRIS and the principals presented to the committee. It was recorded by Wisconsin Eye, which is the state’s version of C-SPAN.
The DPI issued its guidance (6/22) on re-opening schools in the Fall, WCRIS’s 14-member jurisdictions are determining how they will proceed with in-person, in-school instruction.
