District Families,
Tonight, the Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Board of Education addressed two areas involving masking and quarantine procedures.
The Bellbrook-Sugarcreek Board of Education voted not to extend the K-6 Masking Mandate that was in effect. Effective October 29, 2021, masking will be optional for staff and students in grades K-12.
Earlier this week, the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) released new quarantine recommendations for students and staff who have been exposed to COVID-19 within a K-12 school setting. In accordance with Greene County Public Health, these new ODH Mask to Stay and Test to Play recommendations will enable Bellbrook-Sugarcreek to keep the most students possible at school for in-person learning. These new ODH guidelines can be found HERE. These changes go into effect on October 29, 2021. If you were contacted today regarding a quarantine for your child, or your child is currently out on quarantine due to a school exposure, they may return to school tomorrow if symptom-free by continuing to wear a mask. If your child is unable to wear a mask or has a mask exemption, these new guidelines do not apply. It is a federal order to wear masks on public transportation, thus, masks will still be required on school buses.
Mask to Stay and Test to Play applies regardless of masking or vaccination status and does not apply to out of school exposures. Additionally, if your child is determined to be a close contact, families have the option to follow traditional quarantine guidelines (quarantine at home and not participate in extra-curriculars). With the implementation of Mask to Stay and Test to Play, the Guidelines for Quarantine After Exposure in K-12 Classroom Settings chart released by ODH will no longer apply.
We will continue to monitor the impact of this pandemic, adjusting our protocols and procedures as needed. We are extremely hopeful these changes will positively impact our students both academically and socially.
If you have questions regarding how these new guidelines impact your child specifically, please contact your school nurse or building principal. Thank you for your continued patience.