When a full classroom is in quarantine, there are several opportunities for them to remain engaged in learning and receive instructional support. Though COVID-related absences are considered excused absences, it is important that students take advantage of these opportunities so they are able to return from quarantine and easily transition back into in-person instruction.

If a student is sent home to isolate due to exhibiting COVID-like symptoms, household contacts (siblings) who are NOT vaccinated should quarantine while awaiting PCR test results.  Vaccinated household contacts do not need to quarantine unless exhibiting symptoms.

Students who return to school prior to the end of their quarantine period will be immediately sent home.

Students who are close contacts may return to school:

When a student is identified as a close contact, the family is notified by the school nurse, health assistant or designated staff member that the student must begin the quarantine process. When a full classroom must quarantine, an additional email is sent to parents/guardians of the impacted students with additional information on receiving expanding supports during the quarantine period.

A student is identified as having to quarantine if they test positive for COVID-19, or if they are unvaccinated and deemed to be a close contact, as defined by the CDC.

Per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a close contact is someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person (laboratory-confirmed or a clinically compatible illness) for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three individual 5-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes).

Update: March 2, 2022

HCPSS has continually made adjustments to its contact tracing process to ensure we are meeting legal requirements to provide accurate and timely data to the health department while supporting our students and staff who test positive.

The most up-to-date information can be found online.

See also I Was Identified as a Close Contact

Yes, student interns from universities and work study students must provide proof of vaccination status or a negative COVID-19 test (within seven days of the current date) to school administration.

The Maryland Department of Health COVID-19 Data Dashboard shows the total number of outbreak-associated cases in schools.