This page has been created to be easily available to ASCS families. Below you will find information and reminders about policies, regulations and general Covid related information.
Last update:1/21/22

Schools in the Diocese of Fall River report confirmed positive COVID-19 cases to their school families on a weekly basis.  Weekly Covid Status is published in the ASCS Friday Communicator.
NEW
At All Saints Catholic School, keeping your students safe and in school is our top priority. We are writing to let you know, in accordance with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and the Department of Public Health (DPH), our school is updating our COVID-19 Testing Program, effective January 31.  We are opting into an at-home testing program that will increase testing of our participating students and staff, regardless of vaccination status. For more information about this update to the statewide testing program, please click here. The at-home testing option will begin during the week of January 31. In addition to this new at-home antigen test option, we will continue with routine COVID safety checks and symptomatic testing during the week. As part of this shift in the program, we are discontinuing Test and Stay and contact tracing for in-school close contacts. This means that if your child is a potential contact in school, they may continue to come to school and do not have to quarantine. This new at-home testing opportunity is voluntary and only those who opt-in will receive tests. We strongly encourage you to fill out the form by January 28 to opt-in. If you have questions, please contact Nurse Erin Costa or Mrs. Massoud. 
 
COVID-19 Testing Programs in our School:

1. At-Home Rapid Antigen Testing on Fridays   New! Click here for the Opt-in form.

2. Routine COVID Safety Checks on Tuesdays (If you have not yet signed up, click here)

3. Symptomatic Testing as needed for those who have given consent (same as # 2)

• About the Test: iHealth is a 15-minute at-home FDA-approved rapid antigen test
• Opt-In: To participate, you must opt in by completing the Opt-in form. By opting in, you will agree to review the training materials for test administration, report positive test results to your student’s school, and administer the tests according to All Saint Catholic School’s guidelines.
• Weekly: Every two weeks you will receive an iHealth at-home rapid test kit. Each kit contains two individual tests. Your student will be administered one test each week at home on Friday (preferably before school).
• Reporting Positive Test Results: If your student tests positive on an at-home antigen test, you will inform their school of the positive result using the Positive Test Result Notification form. The school will keep the results confidential and will not make individual results public. In addition, it is strongly recommended that you inform your healthcare professional of the positive result.
• Easy, Free, and Flexible: This test is administered at home (not at school), reducing the burden on school staff and time to administer tests and increasing a family’s flexibility to do testing in the home for free.

• Click here for a full “how to” written guide in various languages
• Click here for a video of an individual self-testing

• Submit Results: You must submit positive test results to your student’s school using the Positive Test Result Notification form.
• Confidentiality: Positive test results are shared with the diocese of Fall River Catholic Education Office for informational purposes only. Individual results will remain confidential, and they will never be made public. 

We believe that we can keep our school community safest when the majority of our families have opted in for using Routine COVID Safety Checks on Tuesdays, At-Home Rapid Antigen Testing on Fridays, and on-site Symptomatic Testing when needed.  Please prayerfully consider supporting this whole community effort by opting into these programs by January 28!

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As always,All Saints Catholic School will continue to take all necessary precautions to keep students, families and staff safe and healthy but we need the cooperation from all families when students are not in school.  We also ask for your consideration to respect the privacy of the individual(s) involved.

If you or a family member are experiencing symptoms, or test positive for Covid-19, please refrain from sending your child(ren) to school.  We ask for your continued vigilance in following protocols, assuring social distancing, wearing face masks and frequent hand washing while outside of the school community.  

ASCS is using the state provided on-line portal to gather consent for on-site Covid Testing. Please access the link to allow Covid testing at ASCS. We are unable to accept verbal consent.  Pooled double swab testing continues weekly on Tuesday mornings. Students with consent will be tested upon arrival at school. 

If a pool has tested positive, there is a 12 - 24 hour delay in notification from the lab as to the individual(s) who have tested positive within a positive pool.  We are currently doing on-site reflux Binax Antigen testing as soon as we are notified of positive pools. You may be contacted by the school outside of school hours (or early in the morning before school) if lab results determine your student has tested positive and therefore may not attend school. In addition you will receive email notification of positive results directly from the lab.

Symptomatic testing in school is only available for students who become symptomatic during the school day If your child is experiencing symptoms at home, they need to stay home.

COVID-19 symptoms list: (as of the date of this document)

• Fever (100.0° Fahrenheit or higher), chills, or shaking chills 

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath 

• New loss of taste or smell 

• Muscle aches or body aches 

• Cough (not due to other known cause, such as chronic cough) 

• Sore throat, when in combination with other symptoms 

• Nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea when in combination with other symptoms 

• Headache when in combination with other symptoms 

• Fatigue, when in combination with other symptoms 

• Nasal congestion or runny nose (not due to other known causes, such as allergies) when in combination with other symptoms

Students who are experiencing the highlighted symptoms above, are required to be picked up by a parent and may only return after a negative test or completed quarantine.  Nurse Erin will assist families in following the required regulations for each case.

If your student has had Covid in the past 90 days, please send documentation of the date of their positive Covid test to Nurse Erin Costa - nurse@ascs.dfrcs.org. Please note that quarantine will be required for those who have not provided Covid positive documentation to Nurse Erin ahead of time.

1/7/22 New Guidance (DESE/DPH 12/30/21): 

Covid guidance has changed for those who have tested positive and must isolate.

If you test positive for COVID-19 (isolate)
Everyone, regardless of vaccination status:

• Stay home for 5 days.
•  If you have no symptoms or your symptoms are resolving after 5 days, you can leave your house.
• Continue to wear a mask around others for 5 additional days.
• If you have a fever, continue to stay home until your fever resolves.

DESE and DPH have updated joint guidance. The updated Protocols document includes new language on isolation and quarantine durations, as well additional flexibility in the use of antigen tests for symptomatic individuals. The following version has had the key changes highlighted for ease of use: Protocols for Responding to COVID-19 Scenarios - SY 2021-22 (Highlighted) 

For individuals who have tested positive for Covid -19,  the DESE/DPH guidance does not recommend repeat testing prior to returning to school after the 5 day isolation period, so long as individuals are asymptomatic and/or their symptoms are improving. Individuals must mask when around others for an additional five days after the isolation period.

Please contact Nurse Erin for return to school date
for close contact occurring outside of school.

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Quarantine requirements and some additional guidance are impacted by the vaccination status.  If your child has been vaccinated please email a scanned copy of your child’s vaccination card or medical documentation to our school nurse, Mrs. Erin Costa, nurse@ascs.dfrcs.org. This information will be treated as a medical record that will be securely stored with your child’s medical records in the school’s Nurse’s Office. 

Please note that it is within your right to withhold this information, should you choose. Students who have not been vaccinated or who fail to provide proof of vaccination will be considered unvaccinated when following quarantine and other protocols as required by the CDC, state and local authorities. In addition, it is recommended that vaccinated individuals who are close contacts living with a family member who has Covid will need to be quarantined, regardless of vaccination or testing status.