With many families having to spend the Christmas of 2021 apart and with the vaccine becoming widely available, people around the world were left feeling that the holiday could be different: a time to finally embrace one another and enjoy the holiday season free of the worry of COVID-19.
Despite these hopes, the Omicron variant made its way to the Christmas table this holiday season which led to a surge in COVID cases. According to the Center of Disease Control (CDC), on December 20, 2021, there were a reported 273,667 newly confirmed cases in the US; following the holiday season, that number more than quadrupled to 1,333,662 newly confirmed cases on Jan. 10, 2022.
The Omicron variant, while still receptive to the vaccine in terms of protecting against severe illness and hospitalization, spreads more easily than previous variants. Despite this variant seeming to be less harmful, the spread of COVID amongst unvaccinated people and the likelihood to reach elderly and more vulnerable people has left the American people living with new protocols and mandates.
As outlined in the weekly memo sent on January 21, 2022, to Glendora Unified School District families, students must have a temperature check before entering class and mask at all times when inside a building.
The letter also touched on the vaccination mandate for California students that will be enacted on October 1, 2022, pending FDA approval.
Also mentioned was exposure conduct and testing. In accordance with the CDC guidelines, students are not required to go home after exposure, but are recommended to get tested five days after exposure and maintain proper masking between these days.
The Glendora Unified School District hosted another drive-thru COVID rapid-test pick-up on January 25 and 26. Additionally, the US Postal Service (USPS) is offering four free COVID rapid test kits per household. For more information regarding vaccination mandates and USPS rapid test registration, click HERE to read Glendora Unified School District’s January 21,2022 weekly memo.
