COVID-19 Guidelines

**As of 08/08/22, we were informed by Bates that with guidance from OPEP and the Tacoma Pierce County Health Department, adults and children are not required to wear masks at school. While we are going back to a pre-pandemic school setting we will continue to use the King County Flow Chart to help us determine the next steps for all positive or exposure scenarios as it is the most clearly laid out.**

Your Safety Matters

We take the health of our children, our families and our community seriously. With guidance from Bates and the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, we have implemented specific policies and procedures to help minimize exposures and outbreaks to the best of our abilities.

We understand and respect your need for privacy but there may be times when we are obligated to ask if you or your children have been exposed, have been experiencing any symptoms or received a positive COVID-19 test in your household. We graciously thank you for your understanding and cooperation to help us continue to make our co-op community a healthy and safe space for our children.

If you or your child experience any symptoms or signs of illness please stay home, even if you are vaccinated. This applies to all students, volunteers and staff.

COVID-19 Protocols

It is estimated that the most contagious period is during the incubation** period. This is typically as early as 2-3 days prior to symptoms appearing through the 14 days after exposure. Knowing this helps us contact trace through our school and classes more effectively.

Families will inform their teacher within 24 hours of a positive COVID-19 test for working parents or enrolled children. This allows us to quickly contact trace and inform as needed. Your family's identity is kept strictly confidential. However, as with most infectious diseases (hand/foot/mouth, flu, etc.), a disclosure without family name will be made to our co-op community.

Class Cancelation
After contact tracing and collecting all the pertinent information, we reserve the right to cancel additional classes or close school if deemed necessary.

Pending approval by Bates, the President and teacher, with guidance from the DOH and in agreement with the class, we may decide to test and return after 7 days.

No Exposure but Have Symptoms

In the event that you are experiencing symptoms (see chart), we are treating it as possible COVID-19. Please talk to your teacher and/or the President to know how to proceed.

Know When to Isolate

Isolate: If you, your child or someone in your household have tested positive:

    • WITH symptoms, quarantine for 7 days from start of symptoms or positive test results (whichever came first) AND 24 hours after fever without using fever-reducing medications

    • WITHOUT symptoms, quarantine for 7 days from date of positive test results

Symptoms may look like:

  • Fever (100.4 degrees or higher)

  • Chills

  • Stuffy or runny nose

  • Loss of taste or smell

  • Sore throat

  • Cough

  • Vomiting (even once)

  • Diarrhea (2 or more loose stools in 24 hours)

  • Muscle pain/body aches

  • General malaise or feelings of fatigue, discomfort or weakness

Close Contact is defined as:

  • Being within 6 feet of a person with COVID-19 for 15 minutes or more

  • Living in the same household as a person with COVID-19

  • Caring for a person with COVID-19

  • Being in direct contact with bodily fluids of a person with COVID-19

** The incubation period is the time frame from which you are infected until the time that you start to experience symptoms.

Updated: 1/21/2020