COVID-19 Plan for ECDC

• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) available for staff
  • No-touch infrared thermometers
  • Gloves
  • Masks
  • Face shields
  • Hand sanitizer
  • Cleaning agents approved by the EPA for use against COVID-19
  • Electrostatic sprayer for disinfecting 
  • Disposable isolation gowns and shoe covers
• Masks
  • Teachers are required to wear a mask at all times, except when outside. 
  • Children are not required to wear masks, however, if they arrive at school with one, we will reinforce healthy wear. 
  • When not using a mask (e.g. during lunch and recess) teachers will provide a safe place for children to store them if necessary.
• Illness
  • As always, if your child shows signs of illness, please keep him home. 
  • Our usual 24-hour rule on returning to school after fever, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. is being extended to 48 hours, unless a doctor’s note is provided releasing the child from exclusion.
  • Please reference our COVID-19 Quarantine Guidelines below to know when quarantines are required.
  • Children who exhibit illness at school will be evaluated by the staff. Temperatures will be taken and an overall assessment of the child’s health done. If needed, PPE will be used to protect the staff while administering care to the child. If the administration determines a child should not be in school, a parent or caregiver will be contacted to pick up the child as soon as possible. 
  • Ill children waiting to be picked up will remain with a staff member in a quarantined area until a caregiver arrives.
  • It is very important that ill children are picked up from school immediately.
• Arrival
  • There will be one entry point to the school, the gym doors at the north end of the parking lot.
  • Parents should enter the gym where staff will conduct a health check on children. Parents should wear a mask when bringing children to school.
  • Parents are not allowed to enter the ECDC school side of the building at this time.
  • Staff members will be available to walk children to class, help them put their belongings away, and wash their hands.
• Health Screening
  • All faculty members will have their temperature checked before school begins.
  • Staff will evaluate students’ overall health including temperature checks at the entry point. Faculty or children with a temperature of 100.4 or higher will not be allowed to remain at school.
  • Parents may be asked questions pertaining to recent travel or exposure to illness.
  • Visitors to the school are not permitted without an appointment. Any visitors will have their temperature checked and be asked to wear a mask.
• Belongings and Cubbies
  • Children should bring a backpack every day that zips closed.
  • Each child will have a cubby to hold his belongings.
  • Backpacks should hold a change of clothes, lunch, a water bottle, and snuggles for rest time.
  • All belongings will go home every day. Snuggles, jackets, etc. may not stay in the cubby overnight.
• Hallways
  • Traffic through hallways will be one way when possible.
  • Teachers will ensure no more than one class travels through the hallway at any particular time.
• Cohorts
  • Children will remain with their class (Raccoon, Bee, Otter, Owl, Frog) for the majority of their time at school. 
  • Occasionally, children in the same age group will combine into a cohort. Raccoons and Bees form one cohort. Otters, Owls, and Frogs form another cohort. 
  • Some examples of situations when combining classes into cohorts may occur are during specialty classes, on the playground, in the gym, or during aftercare.
• Classrooms
  • Exit doors of classrooms will remain open to promote ventilation as weather permits.
  • Classrooms without access to outside air will have air purifiers.
  • Teachers will eliminate furniture and materials that are not critical, allowing for more space in the classrooms.
  • Materials that are difficult to sanitize will be removed from the classroom.
• Specialty Classes (Art, Spanish, Music, Gymnastics, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd)
  • Specialty teachers will provide hand sanitizer for children before and after class times.
  • There are 10 minutes between specialty classes built into the schedule to allow for extra cleaning of shared materials.
• Playground
  • Each class will have a scheduled playground time every morning and afternoon.
  • The number of children on the playground will be limited to prevent overcrowding.
• Shared Supplies
  • Sharing materials is a critical part of the early childhood environment. It is inconceivable for young children not to share toys and supplies during the school day. Staff will sanitize frequently used items between uses as necessary.
• Snack and Lunch
  • Children will eat snacks and lunch with their class in designated areas.
  • Teachers will encourage social distancing during eating times.
  • Parents should send individually wrapped, pre-packaged snacks for the class on their assigned days.
  • Children should bring a packed lunch each day. Please consider packing items that do not require opening, or children can open on their own.
• Rest time
  • ECDC provides cots for the PK3 students and trifold mats for the PK4 and TK students.
  • We will not use sheets on the cots/mats at this time, however, please send a small blanket and a small snuggle each day.
  • Snuggles (blankets and stuffed animals) will go home in the backpack every day.
• Dismissal
  • Staff will accompany children not enrolled in aftercare to the gym at 2:45 where parents will pick them up.
  • Parents should wear masks when entering the gym at dismissal.
• After School Programs
  • We will offer dance through That’s Dancing on Tuesdays and Wednesdays after school in the ECDC gym. Second semester Mrs. Bergner will host an art class on Wednesdays after school in the barn. Participants in dance and art must register directly with the provider.
• After School Care
  • Aftercare staff will wear masks during working hours, except when outside.
  • Aftercare will use the playground as much as possible when weather permits.
  • When the weather is not appropriate, children will use the ECDC gym or divide into small groups in classrooms.
  • Parents should ring the buzzer at the main entrance and wait for a staff member to bring the child to them.

• Cleaning and Hygiene
  • Children will wash their hands with soap and water upon entering the classroom, before eating, after toileting, and after playing outside.
  • Additional hand sanitizers are available throughout the building and in each classroom when washing is not possible.
  • High touch surfaces like light switches, doorknobs, faucets, handrails will be disinfected frequently during the day by staff.
  • Drinking fountains will not be used at this time.
  • Bathrooms will be disinfected once during the day and each evening.
• COVID Cases
  • The school will alert the Tulsa Health Department of any confirmed positive cases of COVID in our ECDC community.
  • THD will advise the school on protocols for quarantines, testing, etc. and the appropriate parents will be notified.
• School Closure
  • Our current plan is for ECDC to remain open five days a week even if Marquette K-8 goes to a distance learning model.
  • If more stringent precautions are required by the Tulsa Health Department and the Diocese of Tulsa, or we do not have enough staff to serve the ECDC families, we will re-evaluate our ability to keep our doors open.

After consultation with the Marquette Medical Advisory Committee and review of the CDC’s updated quarantine policy, Marquette and ECDC will be amending our individual student quarantine policy. While Marquette is not requiring a 14 day quarantine, it fully supports any family or individual that chooses to stay in quarantine a full 14 days after exposure. Effective January 10th, individuals exposed to Covid-19 without symptoms can end their quarantine:

• After day 10 without testing.

• After day 7 after receiving a negative test result (PCR test taken on Day 5 or Rapid test taken on Day 7). The individual will be required to wear a mask at all times on campus until day 14.

In order to use this amended quarantine procedure, after stopping quarantine, people should:

• Wear a mask at all times on campus.

• Continue to watch for symptoms until 14 days after exposure.

• If they have symptoms, immediately self-isolate and contact their local public health authority or healthcare provider.

• Additionally, students or staff must eat lunch in isolation to minimize possible transmission until day 15 of exposure.

Individuals who have been in quarantine must communicate in writing the date of their exposure and the beginning of their quarantine if they were not informed by the school regarding their quarantine. In order for a student or adult to return to campus, they must provide a negative test result (PCR test taken on Day 5 or Rapid test taken on Day 7) showing they are both negative AND took the test within guidelines. Any testing not within CDC recommended guidelines will not be accepted, regardless of the test result. Additionally, anyone returning prior to 14 days after exposure will have to wear a mask at all times, including outside recess and PE.