Seventeen public school districts and 11 private schools across Erie County this week began implementing a Covid-19 testing program aimed at keeping children who might have been exposed to the virus from being sent home to quarantine.
It’s pandemic learning, Omicron style, where rising cases mean continued issues covering classrooms and securing enough bus drivers.
County Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein announced the launching of the program Tuesday following the success last month of a pilot program in Grand Island schools. The test-to-stay-in-school program – as it has been dubbed – initially showed that of 193 tests given over a two-week period, only one child tested positive for the virus. That meant just one child had to quarantine at home and miss school, while about 70 other children, who were tested over multiple days, got to stay in class as long as they remained symptom free.
Like the pilot program, the expanded testing program targets children who have been identified as close contacts of someone who tested positive for Covid-19.
People are also reading…
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced last month that counties across the state would be given the option to enact their own test-to-stay programs, which the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also supports.
The participating public and private schools in Erie County have agreed to work closely with the Erie County Department of Health Epidemiology School Team to coordinate testing and data reporting. The county health department also shared information with these schools on how to pick up a supply of Covid-19 test kits.
Erie County Health Department officials met with more than 150 administrators, superintendents and nurses from public, charter and private schools Friday afternoon to explain how the "test-to-stay" program will work.
Additional documentation from the New York State Department of Health indicates that school staff are also eligible for the program. The county health department announced Wednesday that it is incorporating this and other updates into its protocols, and will communicate these and future anticipated updates regularly to participating schools.
The school districts and schools in Erie County that are participating in the test-to-stay program are as follows:
Alden Central School District
Akron Central School District
Amherst Central School District
Clarence Central School District
Cleveland Hill Union Free School District
Eden Central School District
Erie 1 BOCES
Frontier Central School District
Grand Island Central School District
Iroquois Central School District
Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda Union Free School District
Lackawanna City School District
Lancaster Central School District
Sweet Home Central School District
Tonawanda City Schools
Williamsville Central School District
West Seneca Central School District
Bishop Timon-St. Jude High School
Buffalo Seminary
Canisius High School
Christian Central Academy
Mount Mercy Academy
Nardin Academy
The Park School of Buffalo
Sacred Heart Academy
St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute
South Buffalo Charter School
Tapestry Charter School
