We have had a very successful start to the school year, including the return of student extracurricular activities, field trips and all of the benefits students get from the return of in-person learning experiences. The Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board is committed to the health and safety of our students, staff, and families and with the return of the cooler weather would like to remind our families of the steps taken by the board as well as the steps each of us can take to support this commitment.
1. We continue in our commitment regarding school ventilation which is a priority of both the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board and the province through the use of stand-alone HEPA filtration units and the completion of extensive work to improve and optimize ventilation and air filtration within our schools. Regular inspection and servicing of our systems is completed to ensure that they are in good working order. An outline of the board’s ventilation strategy is available on our website under the ‘Our Schools’ tab and includes our ALCDSB School-Level Ventilation Report 2022 from September of this year for your reference.
2. We continue to complete enhanced cleaning standards, including high-touch surfaces.
3. We continue to make hand sanitizer available at key locations throughout our schools
4. We continue to provide high-quality masks for students and staff to wear, though masking is no longer required. We ask everyone to accept the choices made by each individual in consideration of their unique circumstances.
5. We continue to make rapid antigen tests available to students upon request through our school offices.
6. We continue to encourage and reinforce appropriate hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette, with regular hand washing and reminders to cover one's mouth and nose with a tissue or arm sleeve when coughing or sneezing, and
7. We continue to encourage our staff, students and visitors to self-screen every day before attending/entering our Catholic learning communities and plan to stay home if sick.
