Coronavirus Preparedness Plan

March 14, 2020 - Coronavirus Preparedness

Earlier this month USD 460 convened our Health Advisory Team to discuss our district’s level of preparedness for potential instances of the Coronavirus. As part of this process, we identified important partners and essential resources that will help guide our decision-making during a time of rapidly changing information related to the Coronavirus. 

Over the past week, and especially in the past day or two, we have seen many organizations, events, and everyday parts of our lives canceled or disrupted. Schools are a place where many people gather each day, and therefore, we are an organization that must evaluate the most appropriate steps moving forward to help curb the spread of the Coronavirus. In doing so, we will continue to rely heavily on state and local health agencies to make important decisions. 

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), the Harvey County Health Department, the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE), and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are critical resources for USD 460 as we make decisions moving forward. Our Health Advisory Team receives daily updates from agency partners and discusses how we will communicate should our everyday operations be disrupted. 

Currently, we are advised to continue to slow the spread of respiratory illnesses through common sense actions such as staying home when sick and washing hands frequently. Our operations team is being extra diligent and attentive to disinfecting hard surfaces, door handles, and other areas that are touched often. We will continue to follow and promote these common sense practices. 

We are committed to making certain our kids and our staff feel safe at school. There is potential for people of all ages, the little ones and big ones alike, to feel scared, anxious, or a wide range of other emotions as they see events canceled and hear more about the spread of the virus. Although we must remain vigilant, it is not a time to panic, but it is a time to stay informed and exercise discernment based on factual and reliable information. 

We will accomplish this through daily collaboration with health agency partners at the state and local levels. We will practice situational awareness at all times. We will promote common sense practices that slow the spread of respiratory illness. We will know what to do if there is a case of Coronavirus in our region, or community, or school. If there is a need to close school for a time, we will do that too in collaboration with our state and local health agencies and other community partners. 

As of today, state agencies are not recommending we close schools unless our local health agencies in collaboration with state health authorities advise us to do so. There are guidelines we will follow promoting good hygiene and social distancing at school, and we will provide more guidance on this during spring break. 

We do know school closure is a possibility, so we want our families to be prepared if that were to happen. Our goal at this point is to plan for all contingencies including how our schools could support childcare needs, food service needs, and other needs in our community.

We are scheduled for spring break next week. I will be in the office throughout spring break, and we will closely monitor all developments related to the Coronavirus over the break. Should we need to make decisions related to school after spring break, we will communicate accordingly. 

We hope everyone enjoys spring break spending quality time with family. Should you have questions or concerns over the break, please feel free to call our office next week at 620-327-4931 or email ben.proctor@usd460.org anytime.

For up-to-date information, click here for the KDHE Coronavirus Resource Center or the CDC Website. Additionally, we will keep this web page updated as we receive new information and make important decisions about school and events. 

Respectfully, 

Ben Proctor, Superintendent