NOLA-PS Provided Update on Mitigation Efforts to Protect School Community from COVID-19

(New Orleans – August 19, 2021) — In his weekly update on NOLA Public Schools' response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. highlighted the proven tools available to the school community to mitigate the spread of the virus and preserve in-person learning for NOLA-PS students.

"Our science-based mitigation efforts are helping keep our students in the classroom," said Dr. Lewis. "And as most of our schools are back in session, many of our students and parents have expressed how excited they are to be going to school as they normally would. So, we will continue to monitor the data and take any actions needed to keep our children safe."

Regular COVID testing has shown to provide invaluable data to track the pandemic's impact in schools. More than 1,000 students were tested last week -- breaking the previous record of 500 the week before. Of those 1,000, only 2 percent tested positive for COVID-19.

"We have made testing available across our school system, and we're seeing a positive impact," said NOLA-PS Chief Operations Officer Tiffany Delcour. "We tested 1,000 students last week, doubling our record from the week before. Only 2 percent of those tests came back positive, showing COVID is having a much smaller impact among students than it is across the city."

Parents and families are also doing their part to keep students safe by checking children for symptoms and keeping them home when they do not feel well. For example, among the active cases NOLA-PS is currently tracking among students and staff, a third of those never set foot in a school building. Those cases were reported directly to schools.

"I applaud the honesty and proactiveness of parents and families," said NOLA-PS Medical Advisor Dr. Benjamin F. Springgate. "And we encourage parents to continue to look for symptoms in their children, and when they're not feeling well, err on the side of caution and keep them home. Symptoms can appear 2 to 14 days after exposure. They include: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, and diarrhea."

There is very little evidence of spread in schools, and it's the reason the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) and other medical experts have not advised school closures at this time.

That impact is also being reduced by NOLA-PS' mobile vaccine program. To date, more than 1,000 students have been vaccinated, and the District will continue to offer the program throughout the new school year, thanks to our health partners.

The number of quarantined students and staff shown in NOLA-PS' COVID Tracker demonstrate that schools are following the proper protocols. This precautionary measure allows students and staff showing symptoms to self-isolate and stops close contacts from possibly spreading the virus.

The protective layered mitigation efforts – masks, social distancing, testing, and vaccines – are working and the Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB) is working to provide COVID-19 prevention and mitigation strategies.

"In order to provide further guidance to our school partners, the board is proposing a resolution to encourage our schools to do the following: Number one, we're encouraging our schools to require vaccinations for all teachers and staff, which nearly half of our schools are already doing. Number two, we're encouraging our schools to require proof of vaccinations or weekly testing for individuals entering school buildings. Number three, we're encouraging our schools to require any participating student and aftercare or extracurricular activities to submit to weekly testing, or provide proof of vaccination. And number four, we're encouraging our schools to implement weekly screening, testing for all grades and at all school sites using opt-out testing protocols where available," said OPSB President Ethan Ashley.

The resolution will be formally proposed at this evening's OPSB board business meeting. It goes on to also encourage the Louisiana Department of Health to require COVID-19 immunizations for all students entering schools, once the COVID-19 vaccinations receive full authorization from the Food and Drug Administration. In addition, the board will also take a vote this evening on requiring all NOLA-PS central staff to be vaccinated.

"Many schools across NOLA-PS are already implementing these and other measures. Our system will be stronger if all schools not only implement these measures, but continue to innovate in ways that improve student safety and maximize in-person learning," said Mr. Ashley.

The pandemic will undoubtedly continue to be a challenge for our school system. But as these challenges arise, the school community will benefit by working together, because we truly are stronger together. 

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About NOLA Public Schools: NOLA Public Schools is the public school district for Orleans Parish. It includes the district's administration and elected school board, known as the Orleans Parish School Board. NOLA Public Schools currently oversees 76 public schools and is led by Superintendent Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr.

For more information, visit www.nolapublicschools.com. For updates, follow NOLA Public Schools on Facebook @NOLAPublicSchools, Instagram @nolaps and Twitter @NOLAPSchools.