VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The following is a news release by Valley City Public Schools Superintendent Josh Johnson concerning the current status of COVID-19 protocols in public schools.

Johnson said, “Barnes County did remain in the “Yellow” risk level last week; however, our county COVID-19 numbers have increased over the last two weeks. We need your help to be better in a few areas that specifically involve our students and staff at Valley City Public Schools.”

1) Pending COVID-19 Tests
If an individual in the house is being tested for COVID-19 and if a student would subsequently be considered a close contact, we do not want the student in school or activities until a negative test has been confirmed and/or the quarantine period has expired. In the last week we have had students present in school and in activities while parents were waiting for test results.

2) Household Contacts to a Positive Test
If someone in the house tests positive for COVID-19 and a student was in contact (in the house) with that individual, they cannot be in school until their quarantine expires. The state has changed the process of contact tracing and we do not always know which of our students are household contacts. We need to all do our part to prevent the spread and not send students to school if they are a household contact. Please contact our schools if your student is a close contact because of a household positive.

3) Keep Students at Home when SICK/ILL
Students that are feeling sick/ill should not be in school until they are symptom-free for at least 24 hours. We know this goes against our North Dakota tough attitude, but in the past week we have had students in school that were not feeling well and later tested positive for COVID-19. Please error on the side of caution, if your student is sick keep them at home and if necessary, please consult with a physician, school nurse, and/or city-county health.

Johnson added, “we would request your help in recognizing our educators and the ‘extra’ efforts that they have made to successfully complete 42 days of ‘in-person’ school. We posted some pictures on our Facebook page and would ask you to share and make comments. Thanks for helping us to share our love with all of the educators at Valley City Public Schools.”