The state is beginning a school-specific contact tracing program, in preparation for the start of classes in two weeks.
With districts likely to begin sending teachers and students back into buildings September 14, cases of COVID-19 could begin appearing in schools. State leaders say preventing those cases from spreading is key to keeping schools open.
A team of 50 state employees will work with schools to investigate cases and handle contact tracing in the case a student or teacher tests positive for the disease.
“And when we see a case that’s associated with a school, our case investigator will reach out to the staff member to get information, with the goal of determining who was a close contact,” said Governor Gina Raimondo.
Close contacts will need to quarantine for two weeks.
Classmates do not necessarily fall into that category. The state defines close contacts as those who have been within six feet of an infected person for more than 15 minutes.
“Having said that, if you feel more comfortable go ahead and get your child tested,” said Raimondo. “But we don’t want parents to think that your child automatically has to be quarantined just because they were at lunch with or in a classroom with somebody who tested positive.”
The state is also providing testing infrastructure to both public and private schools as part of the return to school
