FHSD Staff and Families:
We learned this week that the St. Charles County Department of Public Health plans to revise its Modified Quarantine protocol to permit close contacts to remain at school if they were properly wearing a mask at the time of exposure. This differs from the current protocol, which requires both students – the positive individual and the close contact - to be masked in order to qualify for Modified Quarantine.
District leaders are reviewing this new guidance and determining if and how the revised Modified Quarantine protocol will impact Francis Howell. We expect to communicate additional information prior to or immediately following the next Board of Education meeting on Thursday, Oct. 21.
For now, we will continue to follow the same quarantine protocols that have been in place since the start of the school year.
As a reminder, please continue to monitor your child(ren) for symptoms related to COVID-19 – even mild symptoms – and keep them home when ill. Your cooperation in this matter will help us keep case rates low, which will allow more students to remain in school.
Finally, please remember that fully vaccinated students do not have to quarantine following exposure to a positive case. To help expedite the contact-tracing process and avoid unnecessary interruptions to student learning, parents are encouraged to provide the school nurse with a copy of their child(ren)’s COVID-19 vaccination card. The information will be stored in the school’s student health information system and will only be accessed when the student is identified as a close contact.
Thank you for doing your part to ensure that students can remain in school.
Dr. Kenneth Roumpos
Deputy Superintendent
