Cases are considered Active from when they became infectious or tested positive for COVID until 10 days after. This is the required isolation period for someone that has tested positive for COVID. Once a positive case moves beyond the 10 day isolation period, it is no longer considered an Active Case. Therefore, Active Cases are currently still in the 10-day isolation period. Total Cases reflect the total number of positive COVID cases that have been identified in a building since January 12, 2021.
As of January 12, 2021, the following number of positive cases of COVID-19 were identified in our school district.
- Avonworth Primary Center = 10 Cases
- Avonwroth Elementary School = 14 Cases
- Avonwroth MS/HS = 34 Cases
- Total Positive Cases of COVID-19 = 58 Cases
Use the following link to access Allegheny County's most recent incident rate per 100K and percent positivity rate.
Use the following link to access the PDE school model recommendations based on incident rate and positivity rate.
The following link takes you to PDE's recommendations for responding to cases of COVID-19.
At the Avonworth Board of Directors meeting on January 11, 2021, the administration's recommendation for educational models moving forward was approved. You can access the presentation provided at the Board meeting by clicking
HERE. Students in grades K-6 will return in the AM/PM Model on Tuesday, January 19, 2021, and students in grades 7-12 will return to their Hybrid Model on Monday, January 25, 2021.
Additionally, our Board of Directors approved Avonworth's Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Attestation in December, required of all Pennsylvania school districts. The Attestation was required by
Order of the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Health on 11/23/2020 to ensure Pennsylvania schools/districts located in a county where there are two consecutive weeks of substantial community spread continue the implementation of mitigation efforts. By selecting the option to have students attend for in-person instruction while our county is in the substantial level of community transmission, Avonworth attests to adhering to the following two requirements.
- Adhering to the PDE Recommendations for PreK-12 Schools After the Identification of a Case(s) of COVID-19
- Adhering to the PDE Updated Order of the Secretary of the PA Department of Health Requiring Universal Face Coverings
On January 12, 2021, we reset our COVID Tracker to zero. Moving forward, the tracker will only reflect positive COVID cases (staff or student that were physically present in a school building while infectious. The following chart reflects how our schools will respond to identified cases of COVID per PDE's recommendations as required by our District's signed and approved PDE Attestation.
PDE's guidelines for responding to cases of COVID in schools are based on school size.
- < 500 students = small building
- 500-900 students = medium building
- > 900 students = large building
Based on these criteria, Avonworth Primary Center is considered a small building. Avonwrth Elementary School and Avonworth Middle/High School are considered medium-sized buildings. Therefore, the following chart outlines how our District will respond to positive cases of COVID in our buildings when our county is in the low, moderate, or substantial levels of transmission.
Confirmed Case - A confirmed case is a known individual that has tested positive for COVID-19.
Active Case - An active case is an individual that has tested positive for COVID-19 and is still in his/her isolation period.
Total Cases - Total cases are the number of positive COVID-19 cases/individuals that have been identified in the District since the beginning of the school year.
Attendance Restrictions - The number of attendance restrictions indicates the number of individuals that are not able to attend school and are currently in quarantine due to being identified as a close contact or symptomatic and awaiting a test.
Close Contact - A close contact is defined as someone who was within 6 feet of a person infected with COVID-19 for at least 15 minutes from 2 days before illness onset until the time the patient is isolated.
Quarantine - The time an individual is separated and restricts his/her movement due to being exposed to an individual during the time they are contagious as a result of testing positive for COVID-19.
Isolation - A person that has tested positive for COVID-19 who completely isolates himself or herself and has no interaction with individuals that are not sick.
MY CHILD ONLY HAS A RUNNY NOSE AND SORE THROAT BUT NO FEVER, CAN THEY STILL HAVE COVID-19?
Most children with Covid-19 have mild symptoms, with or without a fever - some have no symptoms at all. Contact your child's medical provider if your child is ill with ANY new symptoms of illness.
CDC Covid-19 Symptoms in Children and Teens
Group A - 1 or more symptoms in this column | Group B - 2 or more symptoms in this column |
Cough Shortness of breath Difficulty breathing New loss of smell (without congestion) New loss of taste (without congestion) | Fever (measured or subjective) Sore Throat Chills Headache Congestion or runny nose Fatigue Nausea or vomiting Myalgia Diarrhea Rigors |
Keep your child home and contact their PCP if your child has: One or more symptoms in Group A Two or more symptoms in Group B |
|
If you have ONLY one symptom from Group B please keep your child at home until: |
WHAT TEST WILL MY CHILD HAVE DONE?
WHERE SHOULD I TAKE MY CHILD TO GET TESTED?
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY CHILD TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID-19?
Isolation is required for 10 days from the start of symptoms (or if asymptomatic - from the date of positive Covid-19 test)
Symptoms and fever must be resolved for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medicine before returning to school
Contact tracing will be done to determine any individuals that may be ‘Close Contacts’
We ask parents and staff to report all positive results to the school. We are contacted by the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD), however, they may be delayed, therefore, it is critical that parents or staff inform us as soon as possible
WHAT IS ISOLATION?
Isolation keeps someone who is infected with the virus away from others, even in their home
Stay at home in a specific “sick room” or area and use a separate bathroom (if available)
Do not share personal household items, like cups, towels, or utensils
Keep a face mask in place and physical distance from all other family members and pets when it is necessary to be out of the room
Monitor health and seek emergency care immediately for any serious symptoms of illness
CDC - Isolation Information
HOW DOES CONTACT TRACING OCCUR?
WHO IS A CLOSE CONTACT?
Anyone within 6 feet of someone who is positive for Covid-19 for a total of 15 minutes or more starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to test specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated REGARDLESS OF WEARING A MASK
CDC - Close Contact Information
WHAT HAPPENS IF MY CHILD IS A CLOSE CONTACT?
Quarantine is required for 14 days after isolation from the positive case or from the conclusion of the isolation period. This occurs even if they test negative during the quarantine.
Asymptomatic siblings and household members of close contacts do not need to quarantine, but we ask parents to monitor their health.
School officials and ACHD will notify all those identified as close contacts.
WHAT IS QUARANTINE?
DAILY WELLNESS CHECK