VIGO COUNTY, Ind. – At Monday night’s Vigo County School Board meeting the corporation said that it is preparing its schools in the event COVID-19 or the coronavirus makes its way in. 

The State Department of Health confirmed 4 cases of the virus in Indiana. Two of them, are students in the Avon School Corporation. The corporation has now closed schools for 2 weeks to prevent the spread of the virus.

Officials say that they are focusing on cleaning to prevent the transfer of germs. You can read the plan below.

They are also teaching and making time for good hygiene when it comes to keeping your hands washed and re also closely monitoring the health conditions of students, staff, and anyone who enters their buildings. 

Superintendent Rob Haworth said they are also considering what might be done to continue education should a closing like that of Avon Schools would be necessary.

 

Dr. Tom Balitewicz announced the creation of a Mass Illness Plan to deal with a possible outbreak. He said that  they have students and staff with a range of complex medical conditions. Any potential action we take if Vigo County experiences a case of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) must consider all staff and students.”

He added they are taking extra precautions to:

o   Sanitize our buildings daily. Custodians have been directed to use a high-quality peroxide-based sanitizer and spraying the sanitizer on surfaces and letting it dry, rather than wiping it off.

o   Sanitize our buses. Our buses will have sanitizer bottles and drivers will be instructed to sanitize the buses daily.

o   Take time for hygiene. Our schools are providing extra time for hand washing and are providing hand sanitizer throughout buildings.

o   Teach good hygiene. Students, especially in elementary school, are discussing proper hand washing, sneezing, and coughing techniques.

o   Monitor health conditions. Our schools are providing daily updates to our nurses regarding number and types of absences. We are enacting a health care lockout to keep our children safe. We will begin asking these questions of all absent students, and a version of these questions for building visitors:

• Question 1: Does your child have a fever?
• Question 2: Is your child experiencing shortness of breath?
• Question 3: Has your child had a cough for a prolonged period of time?

 

• If a case of novel coronavirus is present in Vigo County, we will pause attendance policies and incentive programs for students.
• If a case of novel coronavirus is present in a school staff member or student, we will work with the Vigo County Health Department to determine when students should return to school. We are developing an academic plan to respond in the case of a prolonged school closure.
• We will communicate with parents through e-mail and text alerts, our Vigo County School Corporation Facebook, and through media outlets.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE MASS ILLNESS PLAN

 

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay