The Jefferson City School District Board of Education will vote Monday on a proposal to classify teachers as essential workers to help with a staffing shortage.
If the board approves the proposal, teachers who were identified as close contacts of a COVID-19 case would have the option to return to work if they are showing no symptoms and if they follow Cole County Health Department and CDC guidelines such as wearing a mask, social distancing and being screened regularly.
If someone who is not considered "critical infrastructure" is identified as a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case, they are required to quarantine for 14 days from the date of last exposure.
A close contact is defined by the CDC as someone who is within 6 feet of someone with COVID-19 for at least 15 minutes.
The district began the process of collecting feedback from staff and families to see how they would feel about classifying teachers as essential employees, Burns said.
"This is not a consideration we take lightly," she said. "We anticipate using the feedback we receive from staff and families to aid in any decision-making around this option."
Thomas Jefferson Middle School and Lewis and Clark Middle School will begin distance learning Tuesday due to a significant staffing shortage from teachers being quarantined.
Most of these employees are quarantined because they were in close contact with COVID-19 cases outside of school, Communications Director Ryan Burns said.
The district does not publicly track the cases or close contacts that occur outside of school.
Since there is a lack of substitute teachers available, the two schools are experiencing a staff fill rate of 30-50 percent, meaning 50-70 percent of absences are unfilled by substitute teachers and must be covered by other staff in the building, Burns said.
Students will return to in-seat instruction Oct. 19 at the earliest. Administration will reassess the situation and provide an update by Wednesday as to whether the temporary closure will be extended for an additional week, Burns said.
The district plans to fully assess staff shortages in other buildings by mid-week next week, she said.
"We have seen an ebb and flow to the number of quarantines in other buildings, and we are keeping our eye on any shortages that seem to be growing," she said.
If the proposal is approved, JC Schools would allow approved employees who have been identified as close contacts to return to work on the eighth day of their quarantine beginning Oct. 13.
Each case will be reviewed by the district's director of health services, their employee supervisor and district administration. A return to work also must be approved by the health department in the employee's county of residence.
The Cole County Health Department would allow teachers who were identified as close contacts to return to work if they:
Receive a negative COVID-19 test on the seventh day of quarantine when rapid tests are available.
Wear a surgical mask around others.
Remain at least 6 feet away from all students and staff.
Have their temperature checked daily by the school nurse upon arrival to school and be monitored throughout the day.
Notify their immediate supervisor and go home immediately if symptoms arise.
Stay home if showing signs of illness.
Not attend nonessential activities such as athletic events and tutoring.
Limit travel to only essential places such as school or the pharmacy.
Sign a written agreement to the above requirements
These requirements will remain in place through the employee's entire quarantine period.
Cole County Health Department data indicates about 5 percent of close contacts in the county later become positive, and those who do generally begin having symptoms within three to eight days after exposure.
During September, JC Schools tracked 380 quarantined individuals in the district. This includes staff and students quarantined due to exposure outside of school. Of those 380 people, 110 were positive cases and 270 were close contacts. Of the 270 close contacts, only six later tested positive, which is a rate of 2 percent, according to the proposal included in the board agenda at jcschools.us.
While Thomas Jefferson Middle School has had the most COVID-19 cases in the district, the switch to distance learning is not because of COVID-19 spread.
Since school began Aug. 24, Thomas Jefferson Middle School has had 28 COVID-19 cases, including two new cases from Wednesday and Thursday, according to jcschools.us. The new cases have resulted in three students being identified as close contacts but no staff. Lewis and Clark has had 15 cases since school began but no new cases.
The board meeting is 6 p.m. Monday at 315 E. Dunklin St. and is open to the public. It will also be livestreamed on the JCSchools Videos Youtube channel.