The SchoolStatus Contact Tracing Toolkit

Fall of 2020, SchoolStatus, the district-wide communication and student data platform, announced the availability of contact tracing reports and tracking. The new compliance feature adheres to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines to help schools efficiently communicate if a student or faculty member tests positive for COVID-19 and monitor quarantine start and end dates. Schools will need to frequently communicate with their communities this year. This communication needs to be more than a general mass message as guardians will have questions and need rapid responses.  To further this, we've paired these new contact tracing capabilities with our two-way communication platform to ensure that the families are informed and students are safe and comfortable in their learning environment.

School or district leaders can use SchoolStatus’ contact tracing report feature to generate a list that includes the infected student’s current schedule, names of teachers for each course in the section and names and ID numbers of all students who are also in the same sections. Adhering to CDC guidance, administrators can then communicate to those on the contact tracing report to take precautionary measures. With SchoolStatus, administrators can:

• Obtain critical data: Administrators must find and isolate the school community who may have come in contact with someone infected or symptomatic with COVID-19. SchoolStatus pulls this data and identifies which students share the same classes or schedules. SchoolStatus also monitors individuals’ quarantine start and end dates to determine when they could potentially return to school.
• Communicate efficiently: Using SchoolStatus’ communication tools, administrators can quickly send group communications specifically to those in the contact tracing report to alert them of potential exposure, inform best practices and outline next steps in an effort to contain a potential outbreak.
• Maintain privacy: The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Acts require confidentiality of students or staff members. Communications deployed through SchoolStatus are received as a one to one communication which enables families to reply directly and privately with questions and concerns.
• Demonstrate compliance: Communications are logged and recorded within SchoolStatus to demonstrate appropriate school and CDC compliance.

SchoolStatus’ contact tracing feature pairs its data and communication tools to support districts in meeting CDC compliance and ensuring safe and healthy learning environments for students. To support districts’ communication efforts, SchoolStatus has prepared a Contact Tracing Toolkit which includes communication resources like contact tracing announcement templates, positive case checklist, CDC resources and more.

Communication Resources for a Great Year