As schools reopen for the upcoming school year, concerns over COVID-19 Protocols put in place by the Fremont Unified School District (FUSD) have recently become a topic of discussion, especially as the FUSD School Board continues to change the protocols in order to adapt them to current trends. Although Irvington High School has only had one reported positive COVID case as of Sept. 19th, the total positive cases reported to FUSD is 80, counting both teachers and students. With the rise in cases, the FUSD School Board has adapted to provide more resources for students and staff. 

The current FUSD COVID-19 Safety Plan includes a mask mandate, mandatory vaccination for teachers (or taking regular COVID-19 tests), and a daily COVID-19 screening exam for students and staff, though staff are required to use the “Frontline Health” app, which allows them to input any symptoms that they are experiencing. As for students, eating during class periods is not allowed according to Irvington Principal Nathania Chaney-Aiello, though it is up to teachers to decide whether or not they want to hold club meetings and other activities during lunch, as long as they stay within guidelines. 

The Sept. 8th FUSD board meeting agenda also included a presentation about improvements that will be made to the current COVID-19 protocols. First, Governor Gavin Newsom’s recently announced vaccine mandate for staff is required to be implemented by Oct. 15th, and according to the board meeting, 95% of staff members are vaccinated. The board has also decided to include data on the COVID-19 cases from the past 14 days onto the already existing COVID-19 Positive Case Data page, in order to accurately reflect the trend of cases in Fremont.

FUSD has also made weekly testing available all day for staff and students, which would allow people who are unsure of whether they have contracted COVID-19 or not to get tested conveniently during school hours. Mrs. Chaney-Aiello has confirmed that testing is available at Irvington on Wednesdays, from 7:00 A.M. in the morning to 3:00 P.M.

Other changes implemented at Irvington include specific sanitization procedures that differ from previous years. Room 26 is the “isolation room” for people who have symptoms of COVID-19, in order to reduce transmission. As symptoms can change as the day goes on, the individual is asked the questions from the Daily COVID-19 Health Screening by an administrator, and under the circumstance that they have symptoms relating to COVID-19, they are required to go home and recommended to take a COVID-19 test. This room is sprayed after every use with an electrostatic sprayer, which has been recommended for sanitization use by the CDC, according to Mrs. Chaney-Aiello. Current sanitization procedures include a focus on areas that are often touched, such as door handles or light switches, and hand sanitizer is available in all classrooms in order to stay hygienic. 

The FUSD website includes updates to all COVID-19 safety plans and other information, as well as updates on the current cases within schools. The Daily COVID-19 Health Screening should be utilized by all individuals in order to be as safe as possible and is available in English, Spanish, and Mandarin. The COVID-19 Flowchart, based on the guidance of the California Department of Public Health, is available in order for people to understand the regulations for students who test positive or have symptoms of COVID-19.