First off, thank you to students, parents and staff for your strides in preventing illness in our schools and community. Your efforts towards additional cleaning, social distancing, proper hand washing, and staying home when ill are making a big difference in helping slow the spread of illness in Darrington. We appreciate all that you do for our schools and our hometown.
In the Darrington School District we are taking additional steps in light of the COVID-19 outbreak. These are based on the Snohomish Health District (SHD) recommendations, and will continue at least through April 5 (the end of spring break) or until the threat posed by this outbreak subsides:
Facility use by outside groups will be suspended. We are committed to ensuring that our common areas and classrooms are clean for our students when they arrive on campus each morning, so we will prioritize cleaning and leave facilities ready to go each evening.
All field trips and non-essential out-of-district travel are suspended. SHD has recommended this practice, with the goal of limiting exposure to affected individuals and large groups that increase the risk of infection.
All concerts, dances, performances, informational meetings, and evening events are suspended. This includes outside performances, groups, presentations, and guest speakers. We are also encouraging as many parents as are able to move to a telephone or digital format for conferences this week. Limiting exposure to individuals from outbreak areas and practicing social distancing (avoiding assembling in groups of 50 or more) are ways to keep safe.
Volunteers in school will be limited to GPI volunteers: These involve maintenance of existing greenhouse programs as well as outdoor walks that involve only one class. These activities, due their outdoor nature and lower numbers, are lower risk and will be limited to a single class participating at a time (per social distancing).
Middle School Winter Sports are cancelled, Spring High School athletic practices will continue at this time, and before/after school club meetings may take place. Several contests have been postponed or cancelled at the HS level, please check school website for updates.
At this time SHD continues to recommend that schools remain open while taking precautions such as those listed above. We will continue to work closely with the authorities to keep our schools safe and healthy. The safety of our students, staff, and community is of the utmost importance. We appreciate your patience and help during these efforts.
