Dear Medical Lake Families,
Thank you again for your patience as we navigate the many aspects of our school closure. The entire Medical Lake staff wants to convey how important our students and families are to us. We understand the tremendous impact that closing schools has on everyone in our school system.
As you know we had a staff test positive for COVID-19. To help us through this we held a conference call with Mark Springer, Senior Epidemiologist, and Dr. Lutz, Director of the Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD). First, we appreciate their valuable time, and the following guidance provided to us. In terms of potential exposure risk, they shared that if a person were in close prolonged contact with this individual for 5-8 minutes or longer then there is a greater chance that they have been infected. Following that exposure, if a person were to be infected, symptoms would manifest within 5 days of contact.
On Monday, March 9th the individual reported being ill and has been home ever since. Given the timeline provided by SRHD, persons within close contact of this individual should be symptomatic as of Monday, March 16th.
We are providing the Spokane Regional Health District with names of individuals who fit within this category. Our staff member has been very helpful in this process as we track their path of contact from March 7th to March 9th.
I hope this provides some relief to your concerns. However, if you have been experiencing new flu-like symptoms contact your healthcare provider.
As indicated from our previous communication, continuous planning is taking place. While we are in the planning process we would like to share the following with you:
District Plan Week of March 16:
Deep Cleaning Schedule for Buildings: Our amazing custodial staff will begin their deep cleaning in Hallett, then DO and then the HS with the Endeavors, MS and MAE to follow. At this point we ask that no staff or students enter the buildings until the buildings have been cleaned. Once we reopen the buildings we have an enhanced screening protocol for everyone to ensure wellness for entrance into the buildings. For the safety of all of our families and community, we do not anticipate opening of buildings before next week and will update you later this week regarding reentry to gather personal items.
Meals for students: Meal distribution is scheduled to begin on March 23rd. These will be grab and go lunches that include provisions for the following day’s breakfast. We have created a survey with distribution locations for parents to help us identify the number of meals we need and what is most convenient for families (Meal Survey) . We are able to feed all children under the age of 18, however they must be present to receive the meal, based on current federal guidelines. If your family is in immediate need of support or are ill and unable to meet the delivery, they will be directed to contact the district office at 565-3100 so we can coordinate support.
Child Care: We are working on a plan to provide childcare for children Preschool-through 5th grade of parents that are considered essential military personnel, first responders or those that work in the medical field. In the near future, we will send out a survey to parents to identify your needs. Child care will begin after we have established timelines from deep cleanings and have a plan in place.
Academics: Guidance from Superintendent Reykdal and OSPI has been very clear that our plans for continued learning be equitable for all students. Given the fact that approximately 15% of our students identified as not having access to the internet, we need to provide learning opportunities and resources that keep students and families focused on maintaining and/or practicing current skills vs. learning new information.
At this time, we are working to develop opportunities for students to review and practice current learning and provide enrichment. These will include online as well as paper/pencil activities and resources. These optional resources and activities are recommended (not required) to help students continue to practice and build their skills.
Parent/Staff Meetings: Previously scheduled meetings for this week are being postponed at this time (for example IEP, 504, etc.) For future planning, we will be working on setting up teams to potentially host IEP type meetings via zoom.
Medication: If you have need to pick up your child’s medication please contact our district office at 565-3100 and we will make arrangements for pick up.
Extra-curricular: All extra curricular activities have been canceled during the school closure. We understand there are many unknowns with regard to activities, particularly for our seniors and plans for these important activities will be communicated at a later time.
Student support and wellness: Please review Coping with COVID-19 Related Stress. The district is in the process of developing a site on our district webpage to help you talk with your child about school closures, managing stress and engaging in healthy coping skills. This is new territory for all of us!
Communication: We are in the process of establishing a centralized communication system which will allow us to receive feedback and collect information from you all to continue to provide accurate information and planning updates. MLSD is committed to keep us together and our bonds strong.
Thank you Medical Lake Families for reaching out to us and offering your support and encouragement.
Most Sincerely,
Tim Ames
Superintendent
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As we shared on Friday, a member of the MLSD staff was being tested for COVID-19. We have now learned that the test came back positive. As we had previously stated, school will be closed starting Monday, March 16 until April 24. This staff member spent time prior to showing symptoms at both Hallett Elementary School and Medical Lake High School as a Robotics team advisor.
District leadership has been in contact with Spokane Regional Health throughout the weekend to ensure we are following proper protocols regarding this situation. The health district is recommending that if you or someone you know were in these locations over the past 14 days please pay close attention to flu-like conditions and call your healthcare provider immediately.
As of Monday, all buildings will be closed to all staff and families until further notice. If you have an emergent need for medications, please contact the district office at 565-3100 on Monday, March 16th and we will arrange a time and place to retrieve them.
Again please be sure to follow all recommendations from Spokane Regional Health Department regarding social distancing and healthy behaviors. Thank you and we truly appreciate the support of this community as we work through this situation.
We strongly encourage you to respect the privacy of our fellow community members.
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Dear Parents and Guardians,
At 1:30 p.m. today Governor Inslee announced that all Washington schools would be closed starting Tuesday March 17 for at least six weeks until April 24. The Medical Lake School District has decided to close on Monday, March 16 to continue the social distancing provided by two non-school days due to parent teacher conferences. Also it was brought to our attention within the last 24 hours we have a staff member being tested for coronavirus but not yet confirmed. Throughout the next week we will be planning how to address continued learning, providing meals and potential child care for essential health care providers and first responders.
This closure includes ALL extracurricular activities.
We will update you by Thursday, March 19 regarding our next steps. Please know our greatest concern is the safety of our students, staff and families. Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Mr. Ames