Strategies for EOP Development
The Department of Education recommends the following strategies school administrators should consider while developing their EOP:
- Involve school nurses, teachers, staff, parents, student leaders, and other community stakeholders (e.g., youth service organizations, health centers, etc.) in developing EOPs.
Assess students' special needs, such as continuing education, meal programs, and other services.
- Monitor local COVID-19 data to keep track of the level of community transmission, to make decisions about changes to mitigation strategies, and to help determine whether school closures may be necessary. Include a daily review of official public health data for the community surrounding the school. Contact the state, local, tribal, or territorial Public Health Department for references to local COVID-19 data.
- Develop and test information-sharing systems, such as school-to-parent email or texting protocols, and periodic virtual meetings with parent/teachers, school and community partners and key stakeholders. Use institutional information systems for day-to-day reporting on information that can help detect and respond to an outbreak.
- Adopt mitigation strategies to promote behaviors that reduce the spread of COVID-19, maintain healthy school environments and operations. Plan what to do if a student, teacher, or staff member gets sick.
- Examine the accessibility of information and resources to determine if they are culturally relevant, in plain language, and available in appropriate languages and accessible formats.
- In consultation with local officials, establish transparent criteria for when the school will suspend in-person learning to stop or slow the spread of COVID-19 and criteria for when to resume in-person learning.
- Assess students' special needs, such as continuing education, meal programs, and other services. Develop strategies to address special needs if in-person learning is suspended or if a student needs to self-isolate due to a positive diagnosis of COVID-19.
- Ensure the EOP considers students with disabilities, students with special healthcare needs, students experiencing homelessness, migrant students, and English as a second language learners.
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
3-2. How often should you include a review of official public health data for the community surrounding the school?
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