*Revisions made on July 21, 2022, in coordination with Santa Barbara County Public Health School Team in alignment with CDPH Guidance effective June 30, 2022

NEW MASKING GUIDANCE

STUDENTS

●      Effective March 12, 2022, masks are not required - but are strongly recommended - indoors in schools and child care facilities, regardless of vaccination status.

●      For 10 days following a positive COVID-19 test or a close contact, regardless of vaccination status, masks are still recommended.

SCHOOL EMPLOYEES

●      Effective March 1, 2022, masks are not required - but strongly recommended - for employees in indoor school settings where children are not present, regardless of vaccination status.

●      Effective March 12, 2022, masks are not required - but strongly recommended - for employees in indoor school settings where children are present, regardless of vaccination status.

●      For 10 days following a positive COVID-19 test or a close contact, regardless of vaccination status, masks are required per Cal/OSHA regulations.

SPECIFIC ENVIRONMENTS

●      Effective March 12, 2022, masks are not required but are strongly recommended on vans and buses operated by public schools and private schools, as they are considered indoor spaces. 

●      Masks will still be required for everyone in high transmission settings, such as public transit, health care settings, and correctional facilities.

TESTING

●      Testing recommendations remain in place for those with COVID-19 symptoms, close contact, and/or a recent positive test. 

●      Surveillance testing of key groups of students is strongly recommended to continue, but not required.

●      Weekly surveillance testing of unvaccinated employees continues as a requirement per the California Department of Public Health August 11, 2021 health officer order.

RETURNING TO SCHOOL AND WORK: SYMPTOMATIC STUDENTS and EMPLOYEES 

Before returning to school or work, symptomatic students and employees:

●      Must remain out of school or work for 10 days and 24 hours have passed since resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medication and other symptoms have improved unless:

●      they test negative and have improving symptoms,

●      OR have an alternative diagnosis from a doctor,

●      OR have a doctor provide documentation of a chronic condition.

It is strongly recommended that a well-fitting mask be worn when around others for a total of 10 days after symptom onset, especially indoors.

STUDENTS

●      When a student has a confirmed positive case of COVID-19 (regardless of vaccination status)

○      Return to school on Day 11 if they are fever-free for 24 hours with no fever-reducing medication and symptoms have improved OR

○      Return to school as early as Day 6 with a negative test (on or after day 5; antigen test preferred) and are fever-free for 24 hours with no fever-reducing medication and symptoms have improved

Group Contact Tracing - Quarantine

●      Groups of students with close contact*, regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status or prior infection, test within 3-5 days after last exposure.

○      In the event of wide-scale and/or repeated exposure, (e.g., grade-wide or campus-wide) weekly testing may be considered.  

○      Any FDA-approved antigen, PCR, or pooled PCR test is acceptable. For individuals who have been recently infected (within the past 90 days), antigen testing is strongly recommended. 

○      Students who receive a positive test result should isolate.

SCHOOL EMPLOYEES

Consistent with the Governor-issued Executive Order N-84-20, we will follow the new CDPH April 6 Guidance for the General Population on Isolations and Quarantines. 

Employees who test positive for COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, previous infection, or lack of symptoms

●     Must isolate at home for at least 5 days from the onset of symptoms or the test date if asymptomatic 

●     May be released from isolation as early as Day 6 IF:

○      they have a negative test (antigen preferred) on Day 5 or later of isolation AND

○      symptoms are not present or are resolving AND

○      fever, if any, has resolved for 24 hours AND

○    wear a face covering (required) around others for 10 days from the date of positive test, especially indoors 

●     If the employee chooses not to test, they must remain isolated at home for the remainder of the 10-day isolation period.

Employees who have had close contact*, regardless of vaccination status, and are asymptomatic

●     Quarantine not required if test within 3-5 days after last exposure

●     Are required to wear a well-fitting mask around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings and when near those at higher risk for severe COVID-19 disease 

●     Are strongly encouraged to get vaccinated or boosted

●     If symptoms develop, test and stay home, AND

●     If test result is positive, follow isolation recommendations 

●     Persons infected within the prior 90 days do not need to be tested, quarantined, or excluded from work unless symptoms develop 

Effective April 6 per CDPH guidance, *close contact is when someone shares the same indoor airspace, e.g. home, clinic waiting room, airplane etc., for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three individual 5-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes) during an infected person’s (laboratory-confirmed or a clinical diagnosis) infectious period. 

Students and employees are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19: two weeks or more after they have received the second dose in a 2-dose series (Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna), two weeks or more after they have received a single-dose vaccine (Johnson and Johnson [J&J]/Janssen), or two weeks after receipt of another vaccine authorized by the World Health Organization (WHO).

For students ages 18 and over only, CDPH has confirmed that fully vaccinated includes a booster vaccine.  

LOCAL TESTING RESOURCES

Aptitude Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. continues to remain available as a local testing option for Cold Spring School students and staff. Off-campus testing locations are listed below.  At this time, Aptitude is committed to continuing to provide free testing for students and staff who do not have insurance. 

Santa Maria (Allan Hancock College)

Mondays to Fridays: 9 AM to 4 PM (same-day result cut-off time is 1 PM)

Saturdays & Sundays: 9 AM to 1 PM

Buellton (Riverview Park, Sycamore Dr.)

Mondays to Fridays: 9 AM to 4 PM (same-day result cut-off time is 1 PM)

Sundays: 9 AM to 1 PM

Santa Barbara (Earl Warren Showgrounds)

Mondays to Fridays: 9 AM to 5 PM (same-day result cut-off time is 2:30 PM)

Saturdays & Sundays: 9 AM to 2 PM