2021-22 School Operations
Layers of Protection
The Upper Grand District School Board has many protective health and safety measures in place at our schools. Please read below for reminders and updates regarding these protective measures.
- In addition to distancing, respiratory etiquette, and hand hygiene protocols, the UGDSB will continue to follow the recommendations and guidance of public health officials regarding COVID-19 safety and prevention.
- All families will be reminded to screen students for symptoms daily before leaving for school.
- All students and staff are strongly encouraged to wear a mask or face covering when in school or on a school transportation vehicle.
- Students will be provided with three-layer cloth masks to add to their current supply of reusable masks.
- Staff have been provided with additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), e.g. non-fit tested N95 masks.
- Mandatory COVID-19 Refresher Training for all staff.
- More than 2,500 High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter units are placed in all UGDSB classrooms and staff eating areas across the board.
- As an additional measure beyond the provincial requirements for ventilation, the UGDSB will continue to conduct air flow monitoring in schools.
- Because the Ministry has suspended the reporting of positive COVID-19 cases and schools/boards will no longer be informed of all positive cases, the UGDSB launched a Daily School Absence Tracking pilot, and publicly displays school absences on a daily basis on the UGDSB website.
- The UGDSB has rapid antigen tests available in schools for student and staff use.
- The UGDSB will continue to consult and collaborate with its partners at Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health and other health agencies to make the public aware of opportunities to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and to facilitate Public Health vaccination clinics.
Ventilation and Air Quality
The school board will continue to optimize air quality in classrooms and learning environments through improving ventilation and/or filtration. Ventilation is one layer of the protective strategies that will be utilized to support healthy and safe learning environments for students and staff. Additional measures such as masking, physical distancing and hand hygiene must also be followed. Please visit this page to see the work being done in UGDSB schools, how the board is meeting the provincial requirements and ways in which the board is going above and beyond the requirements, to help ensure safe learning and working environments: www.ugdsb.ca/community/coronavirus/2021-22-school-operations/2021-22-school-operations-ventilation-and-air-quality/
*View the UGDSB Ventilation Dashboard/Report
Vaccination Disclosure Reporting
As announced by the province on August 17, 2021, all school boards must collect, maintain, and disclose key data metrics that relate to the provincial Vaccination Disclosure Policy. School boards are required to report aggregated, depersonalized statistical information regarding attestations to the Ministry of Education. School boards will not provide any identifying information to the Ministry; information shared will be in aggregate form. Boards are also required to post aggregated, depersonalized statistical information on the public website and continue doing so on a monthly basis for the 2021-22 school year.
The required information for the UGDSB is posted at the link below and will be updated regularly. Please note that these numbers are changing often as more individuals complete their attestation.
To see the full report, please visit this webpage.
Daily Absence Tracking Pilot
Starting when in-person learning resumes in January, the UGDSB is reporting daily on school absence rates. This process is a pilot program and may evolve as required.
Rationale: COVID-19 testing and outbreak management is changing to focus provincial resources on the highest risk settings (e.g. hospitals, long term care homes, etc.). Staff and student contact tracing in schools will no longer be a part of the process and COVID-19 cases will not routinely be reported to schools. The UGDSB’s pilot program is meant to give a sense of the impact of COVID-19 on schools, as positive cases will no longer be reported.
Click here to review the Pilot Dashboard.
Tech Support for Remote Learners
If you have a question regarding technology related to the remote learning schools, as a first step, please visit the UGDSB’s Parent Tech Help website at https://sites.google.com/ugcloud.ca/parenthelp/. The Tech Help website contains answers to the most commonly asked questions, and also has information on accessing UGDSB online tools, a Parents’ Guide to Google Classroom and more. If you cannot find the answer to your question on the Tech Help website, parents/students can ask their question by filling out the form at the bottom of the page. Tech Help staff will post a response on the website as soon as they can. If parents/students are still having tech issues, they are to contact their remote school teacher directly.