As we continue through the current pandemic, we remind everyone in our school community -- students, parents, faculty, and staff -- to actively follow all health and safety practices on a daily basis, especially wearing face masks, washing hands frequently, and maintaining physical distancing.
Even when following best practices, there will inevitably be student exposures to suspected or confirmed cases of COVID-19 outside of James River Day School. Keep in mind that the CDC defines exposure/close contact as being within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes, starting from two days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, two days prior to specimen collection) until the time the patient is isolated.
To maintain a safe and healthy campus environment, we ask the full cooperation and support of every person in our school community:
- Keep your child home if sick or exhibiting any symptoms of COVID-19.
- Keep your child home if they are exposed to a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19.
- Alert James River immediately when/if your student experiences any COVID-19 related symptoms or if they are exposed to positive or presumptive COVID-19 cases.
- If a student has a known or suspected exposure to COVID-19, it may be necessary for that student to quarantine at home for 14 days. The local health department will work with us to determine if quarantine is necessary.
Immediate and open communication with James River from our families enables us to investigate, consult with the Lynchburg Health Department, and make the appropriate case-by-case decisions to ensure the safety of the School community. In the event of a confirmed case on campus, parents of students and members of the faculty or staff who are identified as being in close contact with an infected person will be contacted by the school nurse. These communications will only go to those affected, not the entire School community.
We will always follow guidelines from the Virginia Department of Health and the CDC in these, or any COVID-19 related, situations. Your swift communication with James River will enable us to immediately begin investigating and, following the guidelines, make the best decision to keep the entire community safe and healthy. Please contact Meagen Mace, School Nurse, by phone at 384-7385, or by email at [email protected] should the need arise.
We thank you for your partnership and cooperation,
Peter H. York
Head of School
Head of School
Meagen Mace, R.N.
School Nurse