Early Return From Isolation For Students
Ankeny Schools,
As is our practice with all common illnesses, the district looks to our public health agencies for direction on mitigation strategies, including when and for how long individuals should stay home. This guidance from the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) has been that children who have tested positive for COVID-19 stay home for 10 days.
IDPH recently released updated guidelines surrounding the period of time students who tested positive for COVID-19 may need to self-isolate and stay home from school. You may view the full guidance here.
As a result, beginning next week, parents may select one of the following options, which align with Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and IDPH guidelines, for children who test positive for COVID-19:
- Option 1: Your child may isolate for 10 days at home.
- Option 2: Your child may isolate at home for days 1-5. If your child has been fever-free for 24-hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and is asymptomatic or has improving symptoms, you may request that your child return to school on day 6 provided that your child wears a properly fitting face covering on school property on days 6-10 of what would have been their self-isolation period. Note that medical and religious exemptions from wearing face coverings are not available to students on days 6-10. Please confirm the date of return with your school nurse before completing the form to ensure the calculation is in alignment with public health agencies.
If you would like to select Option 2, please contact your child’s school. A form will then be “assigned” to you via the Infinite Campus Parent Portal. You will be required to complete and submit this form no sooner than 24-hours before and no later than 1:00 p.m. on the day prior to the desired return date in order for your child to be eligible to return on that date. For example, if you wished for your child to return on Tuesday (their sixth day of isolation), you could submit the form between 7:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on Monday. If you are unable to access Infinite Campus, please contact your child’s school for assistance. After the form is submitted, it will be reviewed and processed by the building. You will find the approved form in your Infinite Campus Parent Portal when this has been completed.
According to the CDC, day 0 is your first day of symptoms or a positive viral test. Students who are currently isolating at home, who are within the days 6-10 period, and who would like to voluntarily return, may do so beginning Tuesday, February 1 upon requesting and completing this form by 1 p.m. on Monday, January 31.
Thank you,
Dr. Erick Pruitt