The ongoing pandemic continues to be top on the list of concerns for so many. HCS takes the health of our school community very seriously. Providing a healthy and safe learning environment for our students is our highest priority. In addition to following our school’s comprehensive health and safety practices, we regularly adjust our operations to meet or exceed the most current guidance from local and state health departments during this time of heightened vigilance related to COVID-19.

As we continue to follow the health and safety guidelines from San Mateo County Health, we want to thank you for standing with us as we do our best to keep everyone safe and healthy.

Our enhanced health and wellness protocols include:
Repeated disinfecting/cleaning of “high-touch” surfaces throughout the school day and in the evenings (including desks, doors, public spaces, and bathroom fixtures). Frequent and thorough hand-washing by students and staff, actively encouraged throughout the school day. Ensuring all staff and students who are feeling ill stay home until they recover. Finally, guidance regarding wearing facial masks/coverings is evolving, and we will continue to update parents accordingly.

HANDWASHING 

• Reinforce washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, avoiding contact with one’s eyes, nose, and mouth, and covering coughs and sneezes among students and staff.

• Promote hand washing throughout the day, especially before and after eating, after using the toilet, and after handling garbage, or removing gloves. 

• Ensure we have adequate supplies to support healthy hygiene behaviors, including soap, tissues, no-touch trash cans, masks, and hand sanitizers are available at all times.

• If soap and water are not available and hands are not visibly dirty, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol, and wash with soap and water as soon as you can

CLEANING AND DISINFECTING
Clean high-touch surfaces at least once a day or as often as determined is necessary. Examples of high-touch surfaces include pens, counters, tables, doorknobs, light switches, handles, stair rails, desks, keyboards, phones, toilets, faucets, and sinks.
Prioritize cleaning high-touch surfaces at least once a day. Any high traffic area must be cleaned more frequently or disinfected in addition to cleaning.

STUDENT AND STAFF ISOLATION PROTOCOLS
Some students or staff may develop symptoms of infectious illness while at school. HCS will take action to isolate individuals who develop these symptoms from other students and staff. Any students or staff exhibiting symptoms will immediately be required to wait in an isolation area until they are picked up by a parent.

ISOLATION AREA
HCS will provide a designated isolation area for individuals exhibiting cold/flu like symptoms. Individuals will be screened for COVID-19 symptoms in an isolated area removed from other faculty and staff. This area will be monitored by an adult while the individual is in isolation and until the individual has departed the campus.

COMMUNICATION PLANS
Families and staff will be notified of any positive cases through email. A positive case will be labeled as a “Positive Case” and will not include any staff or student information due to Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). San Mateo County Health will be notified of any confirmed case at the school.

Common Symptoms of COVID-19 (CDPH)
■ Headache
■ Fever or chills
■ Cough
■ Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
■ Fatigue (tiredness)
■ Muscle or body aches
■ New loss of taste or smell
■ Sore throat
■ Congestion or runny nose
■ Nausea or vomiting
■ Diarrhea

INFECTIOUS PERIOD

• For symptomatic infected persons, the infectious period starts 2 days before the infected person had any symptoms and lasts through Day 10 after symptoms first appeared (or through Days 5-10 if testing negative on Day 5 or later), and 24 hours have passed with no fever, without the use of fever-reducing medications, and symptoms have improved.

• For asymptomatic infected persons, the infectious period starts 2 days before the positive specimen collection date and lasts through Day 10 after positive specimen collection date (or through Days 5-10 if testing negative on Day 5 or later) after specimen collection date for their first positive COVID-19 test.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What if I or a close contact tests positive for COVID?
Get tested immediately regardless of vaccination status, inform the office school@highlands.us or call (650)873-4090 and isolate at home while waiting for test results. If you have any questions, please email melanie@highlands.us. We will help you through the process and give you the guidance needed.

Are masks required?
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and San Mateo County Health highly recommend the continued use of face coverings when on campus indoors. Masks are one of the most effective and simplest safety mitigation layers to prevent in-school transmission of COVID-19.  SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 primarily transmitted via airborne particles. Masks limit the spread of the virus in the air from infected persons and protect others exposed to these particles.
In addition, if required by the county, your child may be required to wear a mask indoors for a specified period of time if there is a direct exposure in the classroom.