District Update

RCCSD, and every school district, continues to face the challenges that COVID-19 has brought to education during the past 11 months. With a return to full-time learning based on updated guidance from the Ohio Department of Health and Hamilton County Public Health (HCPH), our district is now experiencing some of the concerns other districts had during the first semester that we were able to avoid in our blended learning model.

As shared during the planning and transition period for this semester, a return to full-day learning includes an increased risk based on outside of classroom activity, particularly related to the lunch period and students not wearing masks. Facility and scheduling constraints, with the cafeteria shared by our entire student population, are new challenges to face. While becoming a close contact in a classroom environment no longer leads to quarantine in most cases, students are still a close contact, which means that if he/she becomes symptomatic, they are a probable case of COVID-19 according to HCPH.

It is important to note that it is impossible to specifically determine how and when any single person contracts COVID-19. While the latest data does show an improvement in cases, hospitalizations, etc. in the region, we are still in the midst of a pandemic and there is still a high incidence of community spread. “Community Spread” is defined by the CDC as the spread of an illness for which the source of infection is unknown, and does not refer to city/community locations specifically.

What happens outside of the school day has a great impact on what happens inside of school when it comes to Covid-19 activity.

Public health measures of wearing a mask, washing hands, maintaining distancing when possible, and limiting exposure to others are still recommended by public health authorities. If your student, someone in your household, or another close contact is positive or exhibiting symptoms of Covid-19, please consult with your healthcare provider and stay home. If your student is a close contact, he/she should quarantine and eliminate exposure to others. As always, please notify the school and district nurse if any of these situations occur.

Our COVID-19 data is updated weekly on the district website. The number of cases and quarantines can be viewed here by clicking the link at the top of the page. These numbers are updated on Wednesdays, and contact tracing/results of the past two days are not reflected in the current data.

RCCSD continues to collaborate with HCPH as the impacts of our recent COVID-19 activity continue to be examined and studied in preparation for a return to school on Monday.

Earlier this week, Superintendent Jason Enix and Treasurer Colette Lewis hosted a Community Forum entitled “School Funding and RCCSD Forecast.” Topics included school funding in the state of Ohio, information about the district’s five-year forecast, which was approved by the Board in November, along with an interactive question and answer session.

During the RCCSD Board Meeting on January 20, Mr. Enix shared a proposed timeline around a possible levy campaign to allow the Board to begin the discussion around a potential November 2021 levy request.

The slideshow can be viewed here.

The conversation will continue in our series of Community Chats. The next is scheduled for Monday, February 1 at 3 pm. Be part of the conversation by signing up here.

We are always open to hearing your feedback about what is going on in the district. Smaller group Community Chats and larger Community Forums will continue as outlined below. We have scheduled them at a variety of different times to try to accommodate anyone who wants to take part. If you have specific questions, but cannot attend, please reach out so your thoughts can be shared by sending an email to questions@readingschools.org.

During the Reading Community City School District Board Work Session next week, Mr. Enix will deliver a State of the District presentation. This will be an opportunity to learn more about how we have worked through the challenges of this school year and our plans for the 2021-2022 year. The Board Meetings still have no in-person attendance, because of COVID concerns, but every meeting is streamed and archived on the district YouTube page here.

Our district nursing staff is continuing to conduct contact tracing and is working with Hamilton County Public Health on these efforts. If your student has symptoms or is awaiting test results, they should stay home and limit contact with others. Testing can let your family know if they’re dealing with COVID-19 or another illness.

Here are the symptoms we should all be watching out for:

• Loss of taste or smell

• Fever or chills

• Cough

• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

• Fatigue

• Muscle or body aches

• Headache

• Sore throat

• Congestion or runny nose

• Nausea or vomiting

• Diarrhea

If your student tests positive for COVID-19 or develops symptoms after being notified that they are a close contact, please notify District Nurse Heidi Sandlin at 513-842-5203 or via email here.