Sarasota County Schools Updates

09.22.2021

09.22.2021

AN IMPORTANT COVID-19 UPDATE FROM SARASOTA COUNTY SCHOOLS

SEPTEMBER 22, 2021 7:30pm

Good evening families,

Please note the following important health updates regarding the school district’s COVID-19 policies and guidelines.

Update to Contact Tracing:

Sarasota County Schools’ contact tracing protocols are aligned with guidance from the State of Florida Surgeon General. Therefore, in accordance with the Florida Department of Health Emergency Rule 64DER21-15, Subsection 3 (Protocols for Students with Exposure to COVID-19 enacted on September 22, 2021) from Dr. Joseph Ladapo – the newly appointed surgeon general – we are making the following changes to our contact tracing protocols:

Parents or legal guardians of students who are known to have been in direct contact with an individual who received a positive diagnostic test for COVID-19 may choose one of the following options:

Allow the student to attend school, school-sponsored activities, or be on school property, without restrictions or disparate treatment, so long as the student remains asymptomatic; or
Quarantine the student for a period of time not to exceed seven days from the date of last direct contact with an individual that is positive for COVID-19.

Students who are currently quarantined due to an exposure to a positive COVID-19 case and are asymptomatic can return to school immediately.

Mask Mandate Policy Update

09.21.2021

09.21.2021

MASK MANDATE POLICY UPDATE

21 September, 2021

Good afternoon, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman with an important update regarding SMA’s mask policy.

During the regularly scheduled board meeting this afternoon, the SMA Board of Directors voted to discontinue the mandatory mask policy on both the High School and Middle School campuses effective immediately. While masks will not be mandatory, their use is highly recommended and considered to be completely voluntary.

The original decision to mandate masks at SMA was made during the period in which the Governor’s Mask Mandate Ban had been overturned. Since then, it has been reinstated and the Board of Directors has therefore voted to adhere to the Governor’s Executive Order.

I ask that you continue to trust our Academy’s protocols and policies as they are enacted with a clear focus--to ensure a safe learning environment for your child.

Thank you and have a pleasant afternoon.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

Chief Executive Officer

Instructional Continuity Plan

SMA COVID-19 Dashboard

Weekly Updates from the Chief Executive Officer

SMA-COL Christina Bowman

Haga clic en "Traducir" en la esquina superior derecha para español.

10.15.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

I am happy to report to you that we did not experience any COVID cases this week on either campus. Since the absence of cases and the drop in positivity rates in our community, I will no longer provide COVID updates unless we see an increase in cases in the future. Thank you for supporting the mitigation strategies that have been able to keep our cadets in classes, instructors in the classrooms, and support staff on the job.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

10.08.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

In terms of COVID updates, the High School campus experienced one positive case among cadets, which did not require quarantine of any additional cadets. For the second week in a row, the Middle School did not experience any positive cases. We feel fortunate to see the numbers of positive cases continue to decline and thank you for your continued help with COVID mitigation protocols so that our staff, teachers and cadets remain safe.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

10.01.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

In terms of COVID updates, the High School campus experienced one positive case among cadets, which did not result in additional cadets needing to be quarantined. In addition, I am excited to report that the Middle School campus did not experience any positive cases this week! We feel fortunate to see the numbers of positive cases and quarantines drastically decrease this week. Please keep in mind that although mask coverings are optional at SMA, I encourage your continued help with COVID mitigation protocols so that our staff, teachers and cadets remain safe.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

09.24.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

In terms of COVID updates, the High School campus experienced seven positive cases among cadets and one among staff members, which resulted in the quarantine of 22 additional cadets. The Middle School campus experienced one positive case, which did not require quarantine of any additional cadets. We feel fortunate to see the numbers of positive cases and quarantines decrease this week. Please keep in mind that although mask coverings are optional at SMA, I encourage your continued help with COVID mitigation protocols so that our staff, teachers and cadets remain safe.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

09.17.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

In terms of COVID updates, the High School campus experienced 13 positive cases among cadets, which resulted in the quarantine of 62 additional cadets and three positive cases among staff. The Middle School campus experienced two positive cases, which resulted in the quarantine of eight additional cadets. We feel fortunate to see the numbers of positive cases and quarantines decrease this week. Thank you to you and your cadets for adhering to the mask policy at SMA. We are continuing to monitor the Sarasota County Department of Health COVID dashboard in hopes to see the positivity rate drop below 8% for three days in a row so that we can automatically suspend mask wear.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

09.10.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

The COVID update this week brings some encouraging news to your home. The High School campus experienced six positive cases among cadets, which resulted in the quarantine of 15 additional cadets and three positive cases among staff. The Middle School campus experienced six positive cases, which resulted in the quarantine of 12 additional cadets. We feel fortunate to see the numbers of positive cases and quarantines decrease this week. Thank you to you and your cadets for adhering to the mask policy at SMA. We hope to see the community positivity rate drop below 8% for three days in a row, so that we can automatically suspend mask wear.

I wish you and your family a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

09.03.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

Due to the continued increase in Covid-19 related cases in our community, I find it pertinent to continue providing you, our families, with campus COVID updates. Let me begin by saying that the Sarasota Military Academy administration continues to monitor all cases of COVID exposure which include contact tracing and quarantining pursuant to CDC and Department of Health guidelines. The High School campus experienced five positive cases among cadets this week, which resulted in the quarantine of 35 additional cadets and two positive cases among staff. The Middle School campus experienced 18 positive cases, which resulted in the quarantine of 85 additional cadets.

As you know, the SMA Board of Directors voted to adopt the Sarasota County School Board Emergency Mask Policy at their August 31st Board meeting. The policy was adopted for 60 days as opposed to the district 90 day policy. The SMA Board of Directors will revisit this policy at the September 21, 2021 regularly scheduled Board meeting. Until then, the adopted policy will remain in place.

I wish you and your family a safe Labor Day weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

08.27.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

Due to the continued increase in Covid-19 related cases in our community, I find it pertinent to continue providing you, our families, with campus Covid updates. Let me begin by saying that the Sarasota Military Academy administration continues to monitor all cases of Covid exposure which include contact tracing and quarantining pursuant to CDC and Department of Health guidelines. The High School campus experienced five positive cases this week, which resulted in the quarantine of 20 additional cadets. The Middle School campus experienced 63 positive cases, which resulted in the quarantine of 269 additional cadets. Due to the high number of positive cases and quarantines, I have been in continued contact with the Sarasota County Health Department.

This afternoon, a Florida Circuit Court judge overturned Governor DeSantis’ mask mandate ban for Florida schools, “ruling the governor overstepped his authority by issuing an executive order banning the mandates.” I will be in consultation with the SMA Board of Directors to determine the Academy’s decision regarding a mask mandate. This determination will be communicated to you immediately when the decision is made within the next several days.

I wish you and your family a safe weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

08.20.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

Due to the current increase in Covid-19 related cases in our community, I find it pertinent to continue providing you, our families, with campus Covid updates. Let me begin by saying that the Sarasota Military Academy administration continues to monitor all cases of Covid exposure which include contact tracing and quarantining pursuant to CDC and Department of Health guidelines. The High School campus experienced seven positive cases this week, which resulted in the quarantine of 16 additional cadets and 17 additional cadets were quarantined due to community exposure and/or were experiencing Covid symptoms. The Middle School campus experienced 31 positive cases, which resulted in the quarantine of 267 additional cadets. Due to the high number of quarantines, I have been in contact with the Sarasota County Health Department. The Department of Health was reassured to know that SMA continues to follow contact tracing with absolute fidelity and reiterated that the positive cases continue to be below 5% with a concern level of positive rates being 10%. Please, help us maintain Covid mitigation protocols at home, so that we can keep our cadets, teachers, and families safe.

The Academy continues to implement as many of the mitigation strategies as possible such as reminders of appropriate handwashing, utilizing hand sanitizer, nightly cleaning, wiping down high touch areas and fogging areas that have been exposed to a student who was identified as being Covid positive. I ask for your assistance to utilize mitigation strategies away from school as the vast majority of cases are from community spread. Our goal is to keep students in class learning and healthy, and our staff safe and provide an outstanding education for your child.

I wish you and your family a safe weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

08.13.2021

Good evening, parents and guardians of our exceptional SMA cadets!

I am SMA-COL Christina Bowman, and welcome to your weekly SMA Briefing.

Due to the current increase in Covid-19 related cases in our community, I find it pertinent to continue providing you, our families, with campus Covid updates. The High School campus experienced nine positive cases this week, which resulted in the quarantine of 21 additional cadets. Two High School cadets were able to avoid quarantine as they have been fully vaccinated. The Middle School campus experienced one positive case, which resulted in the quarantine of 21 additional cadets. Please maintain Covid mitigation protocols at home, so that we can keep our cadets, teachers, and families safe.

I wish you and your family a safe weekend.

Stay safe, stay well and stay kind.

If you have not already received your Covid-19 vaccine, take advantage and pre-register with The State of Florida Vaccination Program

My Vaccine FL.Gov

Covid Protocols

Covid Protocols for Student Exposure to COVID-19

The Department of Health (DOH) and the Academy will be conducting contact tracing during the 2021-22 school year. Completely vaccinated students will not need to quarantine unless they show symptoms. Unvaccinated students, or students who have not completed the series, will be required to quarantine. Quarantined students can return to school on/after day 5 with a negative COVID test (including PCR or the Ellume COVID-19 home test); otherwise, the asymptomatic student may return to campus on/after the 8th day from exposure.
Home rapid-antigen tests: While home antigen tests are available at local retailers, the DOH will only accept the Ellume COVID-19 home test that can produce a lab report that includes: the date the test was taken, the student’s full name and the student’s date of birth. The student may also go to any local testing facility to obtain a negative PCR test, as these facilities provide lab reports.

Department of Health in Sarasota County:

Email: DOHSarasotaInfo@FLHealth.gov

Phone: (941) 861-2900

Ellume COVID-19 Home Test

For more infromation go to:

www.ellumehealth.com

If a student has previously tested positive for COVID-19 and is re-exposed within 90 days after their initial symptoms started, or their rst positive diagnostic COVID-19 test was taken, they will not be required to quarantine as long as the student is asymptomatic.

Protocols for COVID-19 Positive Students

If the student is asymptomatic and tests positive for COVID-19, they may return to campus with a negative diagnostic COVID-19 PCR test at any point; or
If the student is symptomatic and tests positive for COVID-19, they may return to campus, without a negative diagnostic COVID-19 PCR test, 10 days after symptom onset as long as they are fever-free for 24 hours; or
The student may return to campus with written permission from a medical doctor (MD), osteopathic physician (DO) or an advanced nurse practitioner (ARNP).

It is expected that students who are quarantined complete any assigned materials. If a student is ill and cannot complete assignments, teachers will follow attendance policy and, make-up work will be given as noted in the Cadet Code of Conduct.
Schools will arrange for parents/guardians to pick up any materials (i.e., textbooks, workbooks, etc.) that teachers deem necessary for instruction. Google Classroom will be used for middle and high school students.
Students will have the opportunity for field trips.
If a student gets sick at school, their parent/guardian will be contacted and asked to pick the student up immediately.
The online COVID dashboard reset on July 1st, 2021 and be updated as we get information from the Department of Health.
For the next 30 days, starting Tuesday, August 10, 2021, we will be temporarily suspending all field trips and non-essential visitors.

Students

If I want to wear a face mask I can, but it is optional. My school will have masks available. The school district strongly encourages unvaccinated students & staff to wear face masks, but this is not mandated.
Before school, either my parent or I will check my temperature and assess my symptoms; if I have a fever of 100.4 or higher, or a cough, shortness of breath, or loss of taste or smell, or if I have been in direct contact with someone who has COVID-19, I will stay home and contact my medical provider.
If I ride in a car to school, my parent or guardian will drop me off in the car rider area; parents will not be able to walk me to my classroom or to the cafeteria. In some unique situations, due to traffic and safety concerns, all parents/guardians will be informed by the school and provided with specific pickup and drop-off instructions.

I will practice social distancing, when possible, when waiting for the bus.
I will use hand sanitizer as I board the bus and sit in my assigned seat. I will practice social distancing when possible. My bus will be cleaned throughout the day.
When I am in the classroom, cafeteria, or on the bus I will sit in my assigned seat. Personal protective equipment will be available upon request, social distancing when possible.

If I ride my bike or walk to school, I will enter the school at the designated entry point.
When I arrive at school, I will head to the designated staging and/or breakfast area, if needed, and report to my classroom.
I will wash my hands frequently and use hand sanitizer throughout the day. My school/class will have hand sanitizer available.

I will use hand sanitizer before and after I use shared spaces and supplies.
When I am changing classes or going to an elective/special area class, I will practice social distancing when possible.
Before picking up food in the cafeteria, I will use hand sanitizer or wash my hands. I will practice social distancing when possible.

Instructional Support

Secondary - The following agreements are in place:

Schools provide a clear expectation for establishing an online presence to communicate instruction and assignments (i.e. Google Classroom or other technology to post lesson plans, daily assignments and communication with students).
Instructional Support for quarantined students with a focus on the Core.
Students who do not engage in learning while quarantined must turn work in based on the Attendance Policy and procedures set by the teacher (see syllabus).
Teachers of quarantined students continue to provide support to their students through email/phone about specic assignment questions.
Schools develop a plan for administering tests.

Exceptional Student Education (ESE) - The following agreements are in place:

ESE students who are quarantining will continue to have access to academic instruction and related services unless there are circumstances outside the school's control that prevent access.
If an ESE student is quarantining, the ESE liaison will work with providers to continue delivering services during the quarantine period. (SLP, OT, Counseling, Mental Health Services, Social Skills, PT).
A school administrator will work closely with the ESE liaison to assure that ESE students are included in the alternative educational design.
Any time educational services are interrupted for an extended period due to a quarantine (extended period is dened as over ve school days), the ESE liaison will convene an IEP meeting to discuss provision of compensatory education.

Protective Measures

Enhanced Cleaning & Sanitizing

Measures will be implemented to ensure that common work areas and equipment, and personal workspaces, are regularly cleaned and sanitized. Custodians are using eective disinfectant and sanitizing products to clean our facilities every day. Along with these measures, they are taking the following steps to maximize our sanitizing eorts:

Refreshed Cleaning Methods/Processes Cleaning personnel will be sanitizing and disinfecting restrooms more frequently. Their cleaning protocol will include thoroughly disinfecting and sanitizing all surfaces, doors, toilets, handles, etc., and ensuring that all supplies are always fully stocked.
Increased Cleaning of High-Touch Surfaces/Points Cleaning crews will be sanitizing high-touch surfaces/points thoroughly (i.e., door handles, glass, elevator buttons, doors, tables, chairs, light switches) nightly. In addition, daytime custodians have been instructed to continuously disinfect and sanitize all touch points throughout the day.