School Re-entry

PROVINCE LIFTS HEALTH RESTRICTIONS 

In February, the provincial government announced a three-step plan to ease most COVID-19 health measures across Alberta by the beginning of March.

CHANGES TO MASK REQUIREMENTS 

Starting March 1, under Step 2 of the provincial plan, masks are no longer required for staff, including teachers, administrators, other school staff and school bus drivers. Students have not been required to wear masks since February 14.

The Division continues to encourage masks to help protect our collective health and safety. However, students, staff and visitors in our schools and buildings will make their own decisions about whether wearing a mask is right for them and those decisions should be respected.

Read the news story for more details, including a letter from Superintendent Darrel Robertson. 

IF YOUR CHILD IS SICK

If your child is sick, continue using the daily COVID-19 checklist, follow provincial isolation requirements and visit Alberta Health Service’s COVID-19 testing and online booking page to see if you or your child is eligible for testing. 

CHANGES TO VENTILATION SYSTEMS

Well-maintained ventilation systems are part of our health and safety strategies. In March 2022, we installed HEPA air purifiers in every classroom to help protect Division students and staff. We also use the following safety and maintenance processes for our ventilation systems:

• running ventilation systems for an extra two hours before and after regular operating times
• setting ventilation systems for maximum fresh air intake
• installing the most efficient and highest quality filter possible in each ventilation system
• scheduling frequent filter changes and annual system inspections

TRACKING COVID-19 CASES

If your child tests positive for COVID-19, we encourage you to let your school know so that staff can track student absence rates accurately.

REPORTING ILLNESS

Due to changes from the province, we no longer receive daily updates or data from Alberta Health Services (AHS). The province has moved away from offering PCR tests, but encourages Albertans to use at-home rapid tests to determine if they have COVID-19. This makes it difficult to get a clear picture of case numbers in our schools and classrooms.

Without accurate case data, our schools no longer share classroom letters on SchoolZone when there is a COVID-19 case at school. 

To help parents understand what’s happening inside their child’s school, we will report on the number of students absent due to general illness or self-reported cases of COVID-19. View COVID-19 cases and student absence rates to learn more.

HEALTH AND SAFETY MEASURES

The Division is using many strategies that work together to protect our school communities and keep staff and students as safe as possible. These strategies include: