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School metrics
As of Dec. 22, 2020, with a 6-day lag, our case rate is 521.6 per 100,000. Evidence over the most recent 7 days suggests that our case rate is stabilizing. We are currently in the high disease activity level, according to the new state metrics for in-person learning.
 Updated guidance
- We updated our school toolkit to include:
- A letter you can use if a parent notifies you of a positive case before you receive notification from us.
- Updated language in 2 letters—exposure from a case and no exposure from a case in a class.
- Department of Health updated the K-12 Schools 2020-2021 Guidance to reflect the updated close contact definition and quarantine recommendations. We continue to recommend a 14-day quarantine period. View our quarantine and isolation infographic.
- DOH released Tools to Prepare for In-Person Learning. Highlights include:
- Revised metrics for low, moderate and high disease activity levels:
- High: >350 cases/100K/14 days.
- Moderate: 50-350 cases/100K/14 days.
- Low: <50 cases/100K/14 days.
- Schools should consider other factors such as test positivity and trends in cases and hospitalizations when making decisions about in-person learning.
- At the high disease activity level, DOH recommends schools phase in in-person learning in groups of 15 or fewer students for pre-K through grade 5 and those with highest needs.
- Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department will adopt these recommendations.
- DOH released K-12 School Testing Guidance providing various testing strategies for schools to consider.
- If you experience an outbreak in your school, DOH may contact you to participate in the SOAPP Survey. The School Outbreak Assessment of Policies and Practices (SOAPP) Survey collects data from schools experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak to understand how mitigation measures help reduce the size of outbreaks in schools.
- Visit EPA’s Healthy Indoor Environments in Schools page to view new webinars on how ventilation can impact COVID transmission.
What’s been going on?
- Dec. 18 wrapped up our 3-week testing pilot in 3 Pierce County districts. We tested about 3,000 staff and students each week and are exploring options to continue testing in 2021.
- We met with our athletics workgroup on Dec. 10. Key discussion points:
- Athletics can help students physically and emotionally during COVID.
- Safety protocols such as screening and testing can help students engage safely in school sports and show with data that we can engage safely even if county rates are high.
- Our social emotional learning (SEL) workgroup postponed December’s meeting and will reconvene in January. Agenda items planned for the new year include:
- Inviting a youth panel.
- Participants learn to recognize mental health conditions in youth and adults and respond with a proven action plan.
- Several members of the SEL Workgroup, plus other school staff, will participate in Mental Health First Aid training this month.
- Our small workgroup of public and private schools met Dec. 16 to check in with the group. The group plans to meet again the first week of January.
- Private schools met on Dec. 17. Our next meeting is Jan. 21.
Resources from Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department
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