Surveillance Testing for Faculty and Staff

Dear Families,

We want to keep you informed on happenings in and out of our schools. As you may have heard from various Vermont media outlets, the State of Vermont will begin offering regular COVID-19 testing to all teachers and staff in Vermont school districts. Schools have been selected for surveillance testing as part of a larger public health strategy to provide a statewide picture of COVID-19 activity. Because teachers and staff represent a larger group of individuals that are spread geographically and proportionally throughout the state, schools are ideal for a population study.

Surveillance testing does not mean that teachers and staff are at a higher risk for contracting COVID-19 and testing does not change nor impact the prevention and mitigation strategies that we have implemented in our district. Staff and students will continue to practice mask-wearing, hand hygiene, physical distancing, and staying home when sick, even if there are no positive tests.

In CVSD, testing for faculty and staff is scheduled for Monday, November 16 at each of our school buildings. They will not have to quarantine while they wait for test results. These are PCR tests, not antigen tests. The testing is for asymptomatic teachers and staff only.

Our first priority is that schools are a safe and healthy place for students and adults. This testing provides the Vermont Department of Health with important data, but does not directly impact our day-to-day operations. We will continue to wear masks, social distance and wash our hands regularly at school. This testing will not impact the operation of school for your child.

Thank you for reading and for your continued support in helping to keep our schools open.

Elaine PInckney