Editor’s note: The following statement from Westfield Washington Schools Superintendent Dr. Paul A. Kaiser was sent to the Reporter Friday afternoon.
Rocks family,
First of all, I want to thank you all for your support and engagement throughout this school year. We’ve all been faced with new challenges and we can only get through them by working together. A looming challenge we’re all facing is the ongoing impact of COVID-19, which continues to be a large factor in our operations. From the start, we’ve followed a data-driven policy based on the guidelines and guidance of the Hamilton County and Indiana departments of health, as well as our partners at Riverview Health.
Early this school year, when the COVID-19 situation took a drastic turn, we took swift action to reverse course and implement a mask mandate. As our city and county vaccination rate continues to lead the state and our district’s positive cases remain low, we are prepared to, once again, let the data guide us.
Starting this Monday, Nov. 8, masks will be recommended, not mandatory, in all WWS spaces or activities, including athletics, choir, band, etc., during the school day. However, the following caveats will apply:
- Per federal mandate, masks will be required on buses.
- Buildings with a COVID-19 positivity rate above 1.75 percent will be required to wear masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, until the positivity rate drops below 1 percent.
- If six buildings exceed a positivity rate above 1.75 percent, all WWS buildings will require masks indoors, regardless of vaccination status, until all nine buildings have a positivity rate below 1 percent.
We will continue to conduct contact tracing and notifying families if their child has been exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID-19. With the removal of the mask mandate, if your child is within three feet of someone who tested positive for COVID-19, they will be considered a close contact and will be required to follow quarantine protocols. Other mitigation measures – including regular sanitization, promoting hand-washing, monitoring of symptoms, cohorting and distancing – will continue as well, when appropriate and available.
Thank you, again, for your continued support and flexibility as we continue to provide your children with a safe and educational environment. Please contact me if you have any questions.
Dr. Paul A. Kaiser
Superintendent of Schools
kaiserp@wws.k12.in.us
(317) 385-4912
A breath of fresh air!