ConVal students who traveled to Italy with the Grand Monadnock Youth Choirs during winter break last week have been asked to remain home on Monday while the possible coronavirus threat is assessed.
ConVal School District superintendent Kimberly Rizzo Saunders announced the news in a message to the community posted on the Facebook page “We Are ConVal” Sunday night.
“I want to continue to emphasize that, as of the writing of this letter, there are no presumptive or confirmed cases of COVID-19 in New Hampshire. Be assured, as the District receives more information, we will update you as quickly and effectively as possible,” Saunders said in her Sunday night message.
Saunders wrote that over the weekend she was in contact with the Grand Monadnock Youth Choirs Italy trip coordinator as well as the parents of the choir members from ConVal who traveled to Italy to perform over winter break.
“This was not a ConVal sponsored event so communication regarding the trip and the members return needed to be coordinated,” Saunders wrote. “The choir did not travel to any areas in Italy that are presently impacted by COVID-19 nor do their members show any symptoms of being in anyway ill. Nonetheless, in conjunction with The Grand Monadnock Youth Choirs, the decision has been made that those that traveled to Italy will remain at home tomorrow to give the School District and The Grand Monadnock Youth Choirs the opportunity to review the latest information and coordinate with State and local health officials.”
She added that school district officials continue to follow the information being shared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well as the New Hampshire Bureau of Infectious Disease.
“As we have new information from these organizations, we will update our plans, procedures, and protocols in the best interest of our communities’ health and safety. Additionally, as we become aware of families, students, and staff who have traveled abroad to any countries under the COVID-19 travel advisory, we will work closely with them related to both attendance and education,” she wrote.
Saunders closed her message by saying she would send out another update Monday once she has additional information.
In a message to the community on Friday, Saunders wrote the virus is less likely to impact the health of any of the district’s students than other community members. But added that school officials “believe that we have a responsibility to our entire community to inform them about our current practices, our next steps, and our long-term plans in the unlikely case of a community outbreak of COVID-19.”
School district nurses have received information and were given the opportunity to participate in a webinar early in the outbreak to become informed about symptoms and related health issues, she wrote.
“We have continued to practice our heightened cleaning and disinfecting that we do regularly during the flu season. This includes, but is not limited to, the regular wiping down of surfaces and computer keyboards, the consistent cleaning of door handles, the daily cleaning of classrooms and bathrooms, as well as ongoing instruction of students to wash their hands, use tissues, avoid touching face, eyes, and nose, and practice good sneezing and coughing habits (i.e. sneezing or coughing into your sleeve and then wiping your nose and washing your hands). All of these practices will continue, and we will be adding suggested steps from the Bureau of Infectious Disease Control that we recently received,” she wrote.
Parents should keep students at home if they have a fever, Saunders also wrote. “As with all illnesses, if you keep your student home because they have a fever and respiratory symptoms, the missed school days will be considered excused absences.”
“If a student comes to the nurse with a fever or respiratory symptoms, they will be instructed to wear a face mask until they are able to be picked up. Nurses will also inquire about students’ recent travel,” she wrote. “Symptoms according to the CDC include a fever, cough, and shortness of breath.”
For the most up-to-date information go online to the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (NH DHHS) website (https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/cdcs/2019-ncov.htm), the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html), or the World Health Organization (WHO) website (https://www.who.int/emergen…/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019).