After much work, our school reopening plan has been approved. This will help you make an informed decision as to what type of learning you want to request for your child.
Academy Park Reopening Plan PDF
Academy Park Condensed Reopening Plan
Communication and Training
On July 29, 2020 we met with our Back to School Committee and shared with them a framework for them to use as a guide to develop our reopening plans. The following documents were used to provide guidance; USBE Reopening Requirements and Recommendations, Governor’s Office Phased Guidelines v4.7, Leavitt Partners Mitigating Risks Framework, and Granite School Districts’ COVID Response Phases.
On July 16, 2020 we met as a building teacher team to review the draft of the reopening plans and make any adjustments.
Teachers and staff will be training on action plans beginning on August 13, 2020 and continuing during the school year. Training will continue to be provided to staff in faculty meetings, PLC’s and coaching opportunities.
The GSD communications department and Academy Park Elementary will send out information to parents indicating how they can access both the district’s plan and our school’s individualized plans in their preferred/primary language.
School Reopening plans will be posted on August 5, 2020. A link to Academy Park’s plans will be located on the school’s website for parents, students and teachers.
Administrators, teachers, and staff will provide clear guidance/training for expectations/procedures to students the first few days of school. They will continue to reinforce teach and re-teach throughout the school year.
Nykola Patton, principal, will be the point of contact for questions or specific concerns
Accommodating Individual Circumstances (e.g., High-Risk, Personal Decisions)
We will share our plans for mitigating risk factors. For those students/families that would prefer to participate in distance learning they may fill out a form letting us know their desire to do so and we will accommodate their request.
Staff that identify as high risk may reach out to our Human Resource Department and we will provide reasonable accommodations.
We will provide personal protective equipment such as masks, shields, and possibly plexiglass barriers, for employees that identify as high-risk. We will also take increased cleaning and sanitizing measures.
We will review all plans and update their care plans as needed
Enhanced Environment Hygiene & Safety
• Develop increased cleaning and hygiene protocols for custodian, teachers, aides, students
• Faculty/staff/students wear face coverings
• Provide hand sanitizer, soap, water, disinfecting solution & rags in various locations in school
• Provide contact tracing when required by health department
• Disinfect touched surfaces at least twice a day (doorknobs, desks, playground equipment, tables, etc.)
• Have adequate supply of PPE supplies, sanitizer, soap, etc.
• Use floor markings for social distancing expectation
• Use individual student lunch pin-cards & face mask
• Provide disinfectant sprayers for classroom and playground
School Schedules
Granite School District has three schedules that they are prepared to implement depending on what may be happening due to the virus. The three schedules are Regular, Modified, and Dismissal. With the regular schedule students K-12 will be allowed to attend every day using the board approved school calendar with increased safety and mitigation measures in place. We plan to use this schedule most of the time. The only time we would utilize another schedule for an individual class, grade, school, or the district, is if we were recommended to do so by the Health Department, the Governor’s office, or the USBE.
If it is deemed necessary that we reduce the number of students that are attending school, we will utilize a modified schedule. On a Modified Schedule, schools would operate on a split A/B schedule M-Th (Half the students in a class will come on Monday/Wednesday and half on Tuesday/Thursday.) Students not receiving face to face instruction will utilize distance learning or paper-based modules. On Fridays, all students will receive distance learning. Teachers will also use Fridays for planning, small group meetings, and interventions. Students would be divided alphabetically K-12 so students in the same families can be on the same schedule. Accommodations will be made on a case-by-case basis.
The third schedule would be a dismissal. We would only utilize a dismissal for a class, grade, school, or the district in the event of an outbreak and in consultation with the Health Department.
These schedules allow for optimal flexibility and are aligned K-12 to best accommodate the students and families we serve. Any of these schedules may be done district wide or on an individual school basis. The district, or an individual school, grade, or class, could be on any one of these schedules regardless of what color phase the state, county, or city is in.
Monitoring Incidents
We will adopt the new Utah School Nurse Association (USNA) protocol for symptom monitoring.
• These protocols will be emailed to all GSD staff.
• School nurses will verify each site administrator has the protocols and answer questions.
Principal will review these protocols in opening staff meetings.
Containing Potential Outbreaks
Academy Park will establish a sick room as well as an isolation/quarantine room for suspected exposure. All suspected cases will be reported to the school administrator who will contact the school nurse. The school nurse will then work with the local health department to verify positive cases, provide information for contact tracing, and to establish next steps recommendations for the school (i.e. patron and staff communications, enhanced cleaning in designated areas, prevention education, and determination of other actions needed to prevent an outbreak).
Transition Management Preparation
The principal will work with their director and the school nurse for guidance in communication to students, faculty, and patrons.
Academy Park will utilize the blackboard platform to send email, phone calls, and text messages to patrons and staff in the event of a temporary dismissal. These messages will be translated to all available languages.
Mitigating Tactics for Specific School Settings
Classrooms
• Students required to wear face coverings when engaged in contact longer than 15 minutes or within 6 feet
• Assigned seating
• Maximize space between seating/desks
• Seat students forward
• Nonessential furniture and equipment out of classrooms to increase distancing footprint
• Classroom cleaning bucket w/supplies/sprayer
• Used rags container
• Student water bottles (brought from home/school purchased)
• Dots for lining up in classroom for distancing
• Individual student books/supplies kept at each desk – no sharing
Transitions
• Limit transitions
• Apply floor markings & signage to direct traffic
• Hallway – walk on the right side of the hall, no touching walls
• Increase time for transitions
• Use alternate methods of providing water/no use of drinking fountains
• Prop doors open or have door holders to reduce touch
• Clean high-touch surfaces before/after transitions
• Require students/staff to wear face masks during transitions
• Minimize/monitor congregation of students
• Students will be assigned places in line
• Students will sanitize hands before leaving and after returning to class
Entry/Exit Points
• Each grade level will be assigned an entry/exit door
• Before School – students line up by class at a grade level designated door
• Designate entry/exit flow paths
• Doors will be propped open as student’s enter and exit
• Teachers will walk student in and out of doors
• Students will enter and exit in a single file line
• One class enters at a time keeping appropriate spacing
• Limit nonessential visitors/volunteers
• Establish protocol for any non-regular staff including temperature checking and wearing of face coverings
• Hand sanitizer available for both entry/exit
• Signage encouraging physical distancing
Transportation
- All drivers and all students will be masked on the bus
- The ONLY exception is for students with documented health conditions that preclude them from being able to be masked for a short period of time
- Students who forget district issued cloth masks will be issued a paper one
- Students who refuse to wear masks will not be allowed entry to the bus
- Students will be assigned seats on the bus
- All buses will be sanitized between every run of students
- Driver has a ½ gallon sprayer filled with disinfectant
- Driver will walk to the back of the bus spraying one side of the bus and walk back to the front spraying the other side
- Hand sanitizer dispensers will be placed on every bus
- Social distancing is not possible on the bus but is encouraged at the bus stop
- Students who are ill, or are showing any symptoms must be kept home
Restrooms
• Signage and instruction on proper hand hygiene
• Regularly scheduled cleaning for high touch areas
• Scheduled bathroom breaks for individual classes
• Minimize number of individuals in restroom
• Floor markings to encourage physical distancing while waiting
• Encourage mask use while in restroom
• Rotate monitoring of restroom
Lunch/Cafeterias
• No self-service bars
• Food servers wear face covering
• Sanitizer before/after meals
• Increase cleaning & disinfecting of high touch surfaces
• Wear masks when in line
• Reduce # of students seated at a table/assigned seats
• Home lunch students at start of class line-up
• Scan cards will be used instead of the keypad
• Students are dismissed by table to dispose of garbage
• Entry and Exit doors will be propped open when possible
Large Group Gatherings (e.g. assemblies, performances)
• Cancel or limit nonessential assemblies
• Record assemblies to be viewed in classrooms/at home
• Hold virtual meetings when possible
• Wear face coverings when at large group gatherings
Unique Courses with Higher Risk of Spread
• Build in time for sanitation between sessions/use
• Push-in service pattern when possible
• Outdoor PE when weather permits
Recess and Playground
• Alternate use of outdoor spaces/class assigned to designated area of play
• Face coverings are worn when social distancing is not possible
• Playground equipment will not be used
• Activities monitored by Playworks coach and recess duty
• Sports equipment is sanitized between grade level groups
• Teachers will plan activities for indoor recess with assistance of the Playworks coach. Materials will be sanitized after use.
• Students will sanitize hands before and after recess
Special Education, Related Services, or School Counseling (e.g. School Psychologist, Speech Language Pathologist, etc.)
• Plexiglass, face shields, or auxiliary aids for one-on-one close contact
• Offer reasonable accommodations for students who are unable to wear face coverings
• Special education services will push-in when possible. If push-in is not possible, ensure pull out groups disinfect before and after each group and adhere to social distancing guidelines
PD/Faculty Meetings
• Social distancing during meetings
• Participants wearing face coverings
• Possibility to take place online
Before/After Student Supervision
• Face coverings will be required
• Teachers will be assigned an area to supervise
Drop Off/Pick Up Areas
• Face coverings will be required
• Teachers will be assigned an area to supervise
• Siblings will meet at the class door of the youngest sibling to avoid congestion in the front of the school
• Parents remain in cars when dropping off and picking up students
Front Office
• Prop door open to avoid touching doors
• Wear face coverings
• Plexiglass at the front counter
• Hand sanitizer available for patrons
• Sanitize high touch surfaces often
P/T or SEP Conferences
• May have to create an online format depending on current safety guidelines
• If guidelines permit, SEP conference may be held using appropriate safety guidelines
• If in person, face coverings required and social distancing in the gym
Safety and Fire Drills
• Social distancing while in line
• Face coverings
• All students facing forward
• Use assigned doors when exiting and entering the building
• Wash hands/sanitize after the drill
Patron Meetings
• Meetings may be held electronically or in a small group setting at the school
• All participants will wear face masks
• Social distancing as much as possible
Library/Media Centers
• Face coverings
• Students will sit in their assigned seat facing one direction and social distancing as much as possible
• Upper grade students will use the library system to look at the books they want to check out before coming to the library. The librarian will pull the books for the students to check out.
• Younger grades will have books on the tables to select the book they want to check out
• Students will social distance while checking out books using signage on the floor
• Books checked in will remain on the return cart for 4 days before putting back on shelves
• Students will learn how to check out books on SORA on their Chrome Books so they can read books online instead of checking out a book when possible
• Students will sanitize hands before entering the library
• High touch areas will be sanitized between classes
• Doors will be propped open when possible
IEP/Special Ed Meetings
• Offer online option for parents and document
• All participants will wear face masks
• Social distancing as much as possible
Multipurpose Room
• Doors propped open when in use
• Social distancing
• Face coverings are worn
PE/BTS Classes
• Outdoor PE when weather permits
• When indoors, students will be assigned a spot in the gym for some activities
• Equipment will be sanitized between classes
• Social distancing as much as possible
• If art is held in the art room, students will have assigned seats
• Room and materials will be sanitized between each class
Hallways
• Markings for social distancing
• All traffic moves on the right side of the hall
• Create a master schedule to eliminate large groups of students in the hall at the
