Winchester Thurston School
Winchester Thurston School
COVID-19 Response
Our Approach to the 2022–2023 School Year
Winchester Thurston School remains actively engaged in monitoring current guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Allegheny County Health Department, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Pennsylvania Department of Health, the National Association of Independent Schools, and the Pennsylvania Association of Independent Schools as they apply to the WT health and safety plan. Due to the nature of the pandemic, this plan will be flexible and adaptable to changing conditions, science, research, and requirements and will be continually reviewed and revised.
Based on this guidance, all eligible individuals (students and employees) must have received their primary series of the COVID-19 vaccination in order to be on campus.
Religious and medical exemptions will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
- Planning Teams
- Cleaning, Sanitizing, Disinfecting, and Ventilation
- Face Masks
- Symptoms and Health Screening
- Positive Case Protocols
- Arrival/Dismissal Procedures and Transportation
- Parents and Visitors
- Remote Learning
- Communications
Planning Teams
WT will continue to have the following teams in place for the school year.
Pandemic Team and Pandemic Coordinator
The pandemic coordinator and team are responsible for facilitating WT’s planning process, monitoring the implementation of our Health and Safety Plan, and monitoring local health data to assess implications for school operations and potential adjustments to the Health and Safety Plan.
Team Members
Julia Posteraro, Executive Director of Finance and Operations/Pandemic Coordinator
Josh Andy, Ph.D., Upper School Faculty Member
Adam Brownold, Middle School Faculty Member
John Charney, Executive Director of Facilities and Renovation
Scott D. Fech, Ph.D. Head of School
Carlynn Graves, R.N., School Nurse
Kristen Keller, Lower School Librarian
LuAnn Ringler, Transportation and Accounts Payable Coordinator
David Weisbord, E.M.T., Director of College Counseling, Upper School
Medical Review Board
A team of WT parents and others who have specialized expertise in COVID-19 treatment, research, and data will serve as advisors to the Pandemic Team and assist with assessing and implementing the WT Health and Safety Plan.
Team Members
Dr. Louis Alarcon, MD, FACS, FCCM, Vice President Medical Affairs, Professor of Surgery and Critical Care Medicine, UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, WT Parent
Dr. Alicia K. Au, MD, MS, Associate Medical Director, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Assistant Professor, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, WT Parent
Dr. Kerry Bron '84, Board Certified Pediatrician and Pediatric Radiologist, Teleradiologist at AI DuPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, DE, the Nemours Childrens Hospital In Orlando, FL, and the Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville, FL. Clinical Assistant Professor of Radiology at Thomas Jefferson Medical College, WT Trustee and Alumna
Dr. Miriam Cremer, Director of Global Health, Associate Professor, Women’s Health Institute, Cleveland Clinic, President/Founder of Basic Health International in Pittsburgh, WT Parent
Dr. Susan Kause, Board Certified in Emergency Medicine with 17 years clinical experience; trained in Internal Medicine and Sport Medicine; 5 years Utilization Management experience-currently a Medical Director at Aetna, WT Parent
Dr. Matthew Keller, MD, FAAP, School Medical Director, WT Parent
Dr. Janet Harrison Kuzmishin '87, MD, Assistant Professor Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenteroloy, UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, WT Parent, Past Trustee, and Alumna
Dr. Scott Licata, Pediatric Anesthesiologist at UPMC Childrens’ Hospital, WT Parent
Dr. Jennifer Gonzalez McComb '89, MD, MPH, FACP, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Section Chief, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, UPMC Shadyside Hospital, Medial Director, UPMC Shadyside Critical Care Services, WT Parent, WT Trustee and Alumna
Dr. Alison Morris, MD, MS, Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Division Chief, Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, UPMC Shadyside, WT Parent
David O. Okonkwo, MD, PhD, Professor; Director, Neurotrauma Clinical Trials Center; Director, Scoliosis and Spinal Deformity Program; Special Advisor, UPMC Enterprises; WT Parent
Cleaning, Sanitizing, Disinfecting, and Ventilation
- All general cleaning, sanitation, and disinfection will be conducted by OMEX and overseen by the Director of Buildings and Grounds.
- All cleaning supplies in use are supplied by OMEX. The Material Safety Data Sheet documentation is available upon request.
- Electric Static Sprayers have been purchased and will be in use after school hours to assist in the cleaning and sanitation of all spaces to provide a more complete application of sanitizing solutions.
- WT is being deeply cleaned and disinfected daily.
- Cleaning staff will clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and objects within the school on a regular basis throughout the school day. This includes door and sink handles, water dispensers, desktops, railings, etc.
- Classroom Cleaning: Classrooms will be cleaned every evening. Additionally, periodically throughout the day, as classrooms are not occupied, cleaning staff will enter the room to provide interim cleaning.
- Office Cleaning: Offices will be cleaned every night and during the day as needed.
- Restrooms: Restrooms will be cleaned periodically throughout the day.
- Availability of Additional Supplies: Each classroom and office will be provided with disinfectant wipes to be used as needed/desired.
- Outdoor surfaces will be cleaned on a regular basis and when requested.
- Water fountains will continue to be disabled, and water bottle filling stations will still be available.
- Where possible, windows will remain open to provide additional air circulation. Where needed, doors will also remain partially open (except when students are eating lunch in the room) to allow for more air circulation.
- Individual air filtration devices will be available in classrooms and offices.
Face Masks
- At this time, masks are optional for students, employees and visitors on the WT campus and transportation.
- Please note that public school district buses follow the masking policy of their district, not WT.
- Community members who test positive for COVID-19 or are identified as a close contact must follow masking guidelines listed in the Positive Case Protocols section below.
Symptoms and Health Screening
- Students and employees should self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms daily.
- At this time, WT will not require daily home health assessments through Ruvna and will not provide on-site rapid tests.
- Individuals with a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or two or more COVID-19 symptoms should stay home, contact the school nurse, and follow up with a physician.
- Individuals who become sick or symptomatic at school will be sent home. Students must be picked up within one hour of parent notification.
- The School Nurse and the Pandemic Team will monitor Allegheny County Health Department, Pennsylvania Department of Health, Pennsylvania Department of Education, and federal guidance on community transmission. If the school is aware of an increase in COVID-19 symptom-related absences or an increase in community spread, increased surveillance may be implemented.
Positive Case Protocols
Testing
- Students and employees with a fever or two or more symptoms of COVID-19, regardless of vaccination status, should stay home, contact the school nurse, and follow up with a physician.
- If a test is not recommended, the student or employee may return to school when fever-free for 24 hours (below 100.4°F without fever-reducing medication) and symptoms have improved.
- If a test is recommended and the student or employee is symptomatic with two or more symptoms, a physician assessment or a negative test is required for return to school.
Positive Cases
- Positive COVID-19 cases must be reported immediately to the school nurse, who will provide guidance to the family and report the case to the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD).
- Students or employees testing positive must stay home and isolated for at least 5 days.
- If after 5 days of isolation you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication AND your symptoms are improving, you may return to school on day 6, but must continue wearing a mask at all times for 5 additional days.
- Employees should contact HR Director Kathy Stadler regarding protocols for logging COVID-related days off.
Close Contacts
- Definition
A close contact is someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three separate 5-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes), starting 2 days before symptom onset, or for asymptomatic cases, 2 days before they were tested. Exception: In the PK-12 indoor classroom setting, the close contact definition excludes students within 3 to 6 feet of an infected student where both students were engaged in the consistent and correct use of well-fitting masks and other prevention strategies were in place. This exception does not apply to adults. - Notification
School nurses will not notify close contacts of positive cases in grades K-12; instead, nurses will encourage families of those testing positive to reach out to close contacts directly to notify them. For positive cases in Junior Pre-K and Pre-K, the nurse and teachers will assist families in identifying and notifying close contacts due to the young age of the students. - If You Are Identified as a Close Contact:
- If exposed to COVID-19, individuals should begin taking precautions immediately, regardless of vaccination status.
- Wear a well-fitting, high-quality mask around others for 10 consecutive days.
- Get tested unless you had confirmed COVID-19 in the last 90 days and recovered. If you live with someone with COVID-19, get tested right away and again 5 days after the person has completed their isolation.
- Watch for symptoms of COVID-19 for 10 days after your last close contact. If you develop symptoms, isolate and get tested.
Arrival/Dismissal Procedures and Transportation
Arrival Procedures
- Assigned arrival locations are staggered around the campus to allow for appropriate physical distancing. Arrival Door Assignments are listed below. No student may arrive before 7:30 a.m.
- Families wishing to accompany their children into the building are welcome to do so and should enter only through the main entrance on Morewood Avenue.
- Students arriving between 7:30 a.m. – 8:00 a.m. must proceed to the Designated Gathering Area described below after being checked in. Students are not allowed in classrooms until 8:00 a.m. unless they have a previously scheduled appointment with a teacher.
- Students arriving after 8:00 a.m. must proceed directly to their classrooms from their designated entrance.
- Members of the same family or carpool may enter through the same door. Please select the Arrival Door Assignment for the youngest student.
Arrival Door Assignments
| Grade Level(s) | Assigned Entrance |
| Junior Pre-K, Pre-K, K, Grades 1–2 | Molloy Posner Hall Morewood Entrance |
| Grades 3–5 | Molloy Posner Hall Ellsworth Entrance |
| Grades 6–8 | Molloy Posner Hall Stadium Scoreboard Entrance (Enter the back parking lot from Ellsworth and slowly proceed to the stadium scoreboard entrance of the gym.) |
| Grades 9–12 | Upper School Building Main Entrance or Student Entrance |
| Lower and Middle School Bus/Van Arrival | Molloy Posner Hall Bayard Entrance |
| Upper School Bus/Van Arrival | Appropriate Upper School Building Grade Level Entrance |
Before School Designated Gathering Areas
Prior to 8:00 a.m., students must proceed directly to these designated locations and must adhere to physical distancing guidelines in these spaces.
| Grade/Division | Location |
| JPK, PK, K, Grades 1–2 | Room 115 (Lower School Science classroom), Molloy Posner Hall |
| Grades 3–5 | Falk Auditorium, Molloy Posner Hall |
| Middle School | Middle School Dining Hall, Molloy Posner Hall |
| Upper School | Hilda Willis Room or Dorrance Library, Upper School Building |
Dismissal Procedures
A Dismissal Zoom channel will be established to communicate to all classrooms. Faculty will dismiss students to carpool and/or bus/van when students' names are called.
- Walk-Up: Parents/Guardians who walk and arrive at dismissal time should proceed to the assigned exit for their child.
- Car/Carpool: Lower School and Middle School students who arrive/leave by car must exit at the assigned exit listed below. Families with more than one student should use the assignment of the youngest student for arrival and dismissal. Please display the carpool sign distributed with school materials on the dashboard; Students will be called to come to your car upon your arrival.
- Bus/Van: All bus/van students must exit on Bayard Street.
- Supervised Study/WT After Care: Students must report directly to the designated location.
- Athletics, Fine Arts, and Extracurricular Activities: Students must report directly to their designated locations.
- Upper School seniors who have earned the privilege will be permitted to sign out mid-day.
| Grade Level/Division | Assigned Exit |
| JPK, PK, K, Grade 1 | Molloy Posner Hall Morewood Exit |
| Grades 2–5 | Molloy Posner Hall Ellsworth Exit |
| Grades 6–8 | Molloy Posner Hall Stadium Scoreboard Exit (Enter the back parking lot from Ellsworth and slowly proceed to the stadium scoreboard entrance of the gym.) |
| Grades 9–12 | Either Upper School Exit |
| Lower and Middle School Students Leaving by Van/Bus | Molloy Posner Hall Bayard Exit |
| Upper School Students Leaving by Van/Bus | Either Upper School Exit |
Transportation: Bus/Van Protocol
Families and students must remain vigilant for COVID-19 symptoms.
- At this time, masks are optional for students, employees, and visitors on the WT campus and transportation.
- Please note that public school district buses follow the masking policy of their district, not WT.
- Students will get on or off the bus/van only at their assigned stop.
- When possible, windows may remain open to encourage air circulation.
- Drivers will clean their bus or van each morning and afternoon.