COVID-19 Practices

• We strongly encourage masking and support anyone who wants to wear a mask for any reason.
• Masking is optional at this time.
• When gathering in large groups indoors, we may require masks to be worn.

We strongly encourage all students who are eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine to get vaccinated and remain up-to-date on COVID-19 vaccine boosters as the student becomes eligible.

All employees are required to establish that they have been fully vaccinated for COVID-19 or to obtain written approval for an exemption from the vaccine requirement as a necessary medical, religious, or personal conscience accommodation. Employees must provide proof of vaccination in Magnus Health or request for a reasonable accommodation from Human Resources and receive written approval of a reasonable accommodation from the Director of Human Resources, as soon as possible.

A daily wellness screening via SchoolPass is no longer required. We will, however, continue to use SchoolPass for license plate registration for all vehicles.

We will continue to employ a layered prevention approach as recommended by the CDC, which includes:

• Physical distancing of at least three feet
• Handwashing and respiratory etiquette
• Cleaning and maintaining healthy facilities
• Continued air filtration and air handling

To upload your child's COVID-19 vaccine card in Magnus Health, click here and follow the step-by-step directions.

To upload your child's COVID-19 test results in Magnus Health, click here and follow the step-by-step directions.

• Report all positive COVID cases to the nursing staff using this link. The COVID team will advise on protocols and necessary precautions in consultation with the Houston Health Department. You can reach them in the Clinic or at COVID@awty.org.
• Positive cases reported outside of School Clinic hours (7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) will receive a response on the next school day.
• Nurses will respond to cases on school days of operation (Monday-Friday excluding holidays) between the hours of 7:30 a.m to 5:00 p.m.

Yes, home test results are accepted.

If your child is sick, experiencing COVID symptoms, or pending COVID-19 test results, he/she/they should stay home, get tested, and consult a health care professional.

Individuals with COVID-19 have reported a wide range of symptoms – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. Anyone can have mild to severe symptoms. Individuals with the following symptoms may have COVID-19:

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion (stuffy or runny nose)
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea

• 5 days of isolation (day of positive test is day 0)
• Day 1 of isolation is the day after the positive test
• Wear mask for 5 additional full days after returning to school
• Return date is on day 6 if symptoms are improving, individual is without fever within 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medications
• If they choose to test on day 6 before returning, and test positive, they must receive clearance to return from a medical professional

• Follow the guidelines below:
  • Regardless of vaccination status:
    • No quarantine required; individuals may return to school
    • Test on Day 5
    • Wear well-fitting mask for 10 days
• If your child develops symptoms, he/she/they should stay home, get tested, and seek medical care
• If your child tests positive, he/she/they should stay home, complete the online positive case form, and seek medical care

• The school will no longer conduct close contact tracing.
• Each individual is responsible for notifying those they identify as a close contact in and out of the school setting.

• Positive cases reported to the school will be reported to the Houston Health Department.
• Division Offices will be notified of each positive case.
• Division Offices will send general notification that a positive case has been reported to the applicable class/group.

Yes, the COVID-19 Dashboard will remain on our website, where only positive cases will be posted. The dashboard will be updated every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday each week.

The CDC updated their travel recommendation on 8/24/2022 for both domestic and international travel:

DOMESTIC: 

After Travel - ALL Travelers

Recommended:

• Get tested with a viral test if your travel involved situations with greater risk of exposure such as being in crowded places while not wearing a high-quality mask or respirator.
  • Find a COVID-19 testing location near you or use a self-test.
  • If you already had COVID-19 within the past 90 days, see specific testing recommendations.
• Monitor yourself for COVID-19 symptoms.

INTERNATIONAL: 

After Arrival in the United States - ALL Travelers

Recommended:

• Get tested with a viral test 3-5 days after arrival.
  • Find a U.S. COVID-19 testing location near you or use a self-test.
  • If you already had COVID-19 within the past 90 days, see specific testing recommendations.
• Monitor yourself for COVID-19 symptoms.

Our nursing staff is here to help and available during school days of operation (Monday-Friday excluding holidays) between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Please address your questions to COVID@awty.org. Your message will be answered on the next school day.

We will return to holding on-campus events. We look forward to welcoming parents back to all of our events. However, in keeping with all of our learning throughout the pandemic and assisting with safety measures, we ask parents to come on campus only for events or purposeful reasons.

Secondary school clubs, athletics, and music programs will return to normal.

Awty Plus and other ancillary activities (tennis lessons, soccer academy) will resume with the observation of the same health and safety protocols practiced throughout the regular school day.

Yes, the field trips and overnight travel (i.e. Awty Connects Week) will resume this year. It is important to note the following:

• If your child is sick, experiencing COVID-19 symptoms, or pending COVID-19 test results, he/she/they should stay home, get tested, and consult a health care professional.
• If your child is ill and/or has symptoms, you must provide medical clearance to travel from a medical professional.
• If your child is completing their isolation period of 5 full days following COVID-19, they should remain at home until their isolation is completed.
• If a student becomes ill or develops symptoms during the trip, the student will be sent home or will need to be picked up immediately.

• We look forward to welcoming parents back to all of our events.
• However, in keeping with all of our learning throughout the pandemic and assisting with safety measures, we ask parents to come on campus only for events or purposeful reasons.
• For the time being, "walk-in" (parking on campus and walking a student to or from classes) is not permitted on either campus.

Our menu offerings will return to normal. New CDC guidance suggests that there is a very low risk of COVID transmission from surfaces and shared objects. As such, we will no longer limit food service to single-use items and prepackaged meals.

With ongoing construction on the main campus, food service will look a little different at the start of the year. Anticipated changes due to the construction on campus include:

• A more restricted lunch with fewer options until the new kitchen opens
• For Secondary students, there will be a hot lunch (menu to be selected from student favorites) each day with a few cold options.
• LS students will have a lunch service comparable to last year with hot and cold selections.
• Service at the ELC will remain the same with the full normal menu.
• At this time, the student bistro will remain closed due to construction constraints. Students should bring their own snacks for consumption.

We will continue to offer busing. Please see the busing information here. Masks are optional on buses.

Currently, student drop-off and pick-up are available only by using one of the carpool lanes, or on the main campus, via the pedestrian access at the East Gate for those walking to school. Students in 6éme/6th grade and above may enter and exit unaccompanied. Students in Lower School must be dropped off and picked up at the gate either by an adult parent/guardian or by a secondary student sibling). Parent/guardian authorization is required for student pedestrian access to campus.

For the time being, "walk-in" (parking on campus and walking a student to or from classes) is not permitted on either campus.

Complete arrival, dismissal, and transportation procedures and operation times will be communicated by the division offices before the start of classes.

We expect to open the School Store with visitor limitations. The School Store will continue to offer email ordering.