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St. Therese Catholic Academy
COVID-19 Response & Protocols
Updated April 12, 2022

On Thursday, January 6, 2022, Public Health - Seattle & King County (PHSKC) adopted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s revised recommendations for K-12 settings (Tuesday, January 4). The new guidance allows schools to begin utilizing new recommendations and consider adapting their own protocols. We at St. Therese, have decided to modify some of our protocols for our scholars and Dream Team members. The new quarantine policy has taken effect and you will find details below. 

On this page you will find...

Quarantine Guidelines

  • Required quarantine timelines for students/staff

  • Vaccinated student protocols

  • Unvaccinated quarantine protocols

Testing on Campus

  • Consent for testing on campus

  • PCR and Rapid Antigen testing on campus

  • Who can test?

FAQs

  • See below for commonly asked questions and answers

Updates: 4/09/22

Masking on Campus Updates: 

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March 14th - April 8th: Masks optional outside and required indoors.

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April 8th - 15th: Masks optional inside and outside with exceptions to large gatherings (mass or indoor assembly) and certain classes (art and library).

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April 25th - 29th (the week following Spring Break): Masks will be required indoors and testing is recommended if you gathered in large groups over Easter. 

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May 2 - end of school year: Masks optional inside and outside with continued exceptions on campus.

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**If you are an close contact to someone who tested positive for COVID-19 you are required to wear your mask on campus for 10 days following that exposure. 

 

 

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Quarantine Guidelines

What to do if you test positive for COVID-19:

 

  • All people who have tested positive, regardless of symptoms or vaccination status, need to isolate for a minimum of 5 days. Day 0 is the day of the positive COVID-19 test and day 1 is the first full day after the specimen was collected for the positive test.

  • Will need to take an antigen test on or after day 5 of quarantine. This test must result negative to return to school the next day. If you choose to take your test off campus you will need to submit results to the office before returning.  

  • Please note, you will want to wait until symptoms are completely gone to take a rapid antigen test. If you test when you have symptoms, you will likely receive a positive antigen test and must continue quarantine until either day 14 or you can produce a negative antigen test on campus. 

    • For symptomatic individuals, ​if they continue to have a fever or other symptoms have not improved after 5 days of isolation, they should wait to end isolation until they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication and other symptoms have improved.

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CLOSE CONTACT WITH SOMEONE WITH COVID-19


Does NOT Need to Quarantine
Individuals who came into close contact with someone with COVID-19 and are in one of the following groups do NOT need to quarantine:

  • Individuals who are ages 18 and older and have received ALL recommended vaccine doses, including boosters and additional primary shots for some immunocompromised people.

  • Students who are ages 5–17 years and completed the primary series of COVID-19 vaccines.

  • Individuals who had confirmed COVID-19 within the last 90 days (tested positive using a viral test).

 

Needs to Quarantine
Individuals who come into close contact with someone with COVID-19 should quarantine for at least 5 days (day 0 through day 5) after their last close contact (and return a negative antigen test to return) if they are in one of the following groups:

  • Individuals who are ages 18 and older and completed the primary series of recommended vaccines, but have not yet received a booster shot.

  • Individuals who received the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine (completing the primary series) over 2 months ago and have yet not received a booster shot.

  • Individuals who are not vaccinated or have not completed a primary vaccine series.

 

*Individuals should get tested at least 5 days after their last close contact with someone with COVID-19, unless they had confirmed COVID-19 in the last 90 days and had subsequently recovered. They will need to produce a negative antigen test to return to school.


Household Close Contacts
If someone in your household tests positive for COVID-19, your student will need to isolate for 5 days following the test date as long as they can remain properly quarantined from the household member who tested positive. They will need to produce a negative antigen test or PCR test taken on or after day 5 of exposure. We will do testing on campus for your student - please head to the main office prior to assembly to take a rapid antigen test and sign a consent form.



*Individuals should wear a mask around others for 10 days from the date of their last close contact with someone with COVID-19 (the date of last close contact is considered day 0). Individuals must wear a surgical (alternatively a KN95, KF94, or N95) mask when on campus. If you are in need of any of these masks please let us know and we can supply your student with them on campus. 
 
 
For additional information on the updated quarantine and isolation guidance, please visit the CDC FAQ.

Testing on Campus

St. Therese Catholic Academy is now offering both PCR testing and Rapid Antigen testing on campus for all students and staff members. These tests are self-administered anterior nasal tests that are done with a trained observer. In order for you student to utilize these services on campus we will need consent forms for each type of testing. Your student may utilize testing on campus if they are symptomatic or if they have been exposed on campus or during school related activities. 

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PCR Testing on Campus: Atlas Genomics

  • Fill out the following consent form to participate in PCR testing on campus.

  • Schedule an appointment with the office to test on campus

  • Test is administered on campus with a trained observer and sent to Atlas Genomics the same day

  • Results will be available between 24-48 hours. Please contact the office if you have any questions throughout the process

* PCR testing is a more sensitive test for COVID-19. It can detect small traces of the virus in your system. It takes longer to return a result but can detect COVID at a larger range than a rapid test. ​

 

Rapid Antigen Testing: BinaxNOW & Carestart

  • Fill out the following consent form to participate in Rapid Antigen testing on campus.  

  • Pre-register your student via this link to expedite the process

  • Schedule an appointment with the office to test on campus

  • Test is administered on campus with a trained observer and results are received within 15 minutes. Results can be texted to your phone if you do not want to wait on campus. 

  • If your student is testing to return on or after day 5 of a positive case or an exposure, they can return as soon as the antigen test results negative and if they are symptom-free. 

* Rapid Antigen testing is less sensitive and can detect high viral loads in your system. Rapid tests result within 15 minutes and are good for testing after a positive case or if you are presenting symptoms. ​

FAQs

Please contact the main office (office@stcaseattle.org) if you have any questions related to COVID-19 management, testing, or protocols. We have compiled some answers to commonly asked questions here to help guide you in your decision making. 

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  1. Who can test on campus?

    • Students and staff members who have been exposed to COVID on our campus or are symptomatic can test on site as long as we have consent forms for them. ​

  2. I'm vaccinated, do I need to quarantine or test if I'm exposed?

    • If someone in your household tests positive for COVID-19 you need to quarantine at home for 5 days and test on or after day 5 to return. If you are exposed on campus, you do not need to quarantine or test to return. Testing will be available to all students who are exposed, regardless of vaccination status and it is recommended everyone test on campus. ​

  3. How should I report a positive case to the school?

    • If your student tests positive outside of the school please email everyone on the admin team (Mr. DeBoer, Mrs. Day, Mr. Nelson, and Ms. Nicole) in addition to calling the school to inform us (206-324-0460)​

  4. What if I don't want to have my child tested?

    • If your child is required to quarantine and test to return (unvaccinated students who have been exposed or positive cases trying to return before 10 days) but you do not consent to testing you will need to quarantine longer.

      • If you tested positive and do not want to test to return, your child will need to quarantine for a full 10 days.

      • If you are unvaccinated and exposed on campus, you will need to quarantine for 14 days from last date of exposure.

      • If you were exposed at home and do not consent to testing, you will need to quarantine for 10 days after the positive case's day 5 (approximately 14- 15 days depending on other household cases).​

  5. Is testing free?

    • Yes! We just need a consent form from you, that is all. ​

  6. My student tested positive and we are on day 5... what now?

    • If symptoms are still present, wait until they are gone or significantly improved to test. We do not recommend testing with a PCR because your student will likely result positive again due to the sensitivity of those tests. We recommend testing with a rapid antigen test. If they are negative they can return on day 6 if they continue to show no symptoms. If that test is positive you will have to either test again another day or wait until day 10 to return. ​

You can also look at the CDC website and King County DOH to answer most questions. 

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