With the introduction of the Omicron variant into the United States, both a more contagious and generally less severe version of COVID-19, an unprecedented amount of daily cases within our country, state and even district have come alongside it. Tigard-Tualatin School District’s (TTSD) return to Comprehensive Distance Learning (CDL) was in response to the spike of cases among students and staff in the district as well as difficulty filling the absences left by teachers needing to quarantine. 

The return to CDL, admittedly controversial among students and faculty, was aimed at easing the effects of Omicron across TTSD, allowing both the time for students and teachers afflicted with COVID to quarantine or recover, and for the reallocation of teachers to the elementary schools, which remained open during the closures.

The return to in-person learning, equally as controversial as the switch to CDL, has brought with it a change in policies regarding how TTSD is responding to contact tracing, quarantine requirements and updating the dashboard amid the rise in cases. 

In terms of contact tracing, TTSD’s previous policy included updating anyone who had come into close contact with a positive COVID case. For example, if a member of a club tested positive, other members would then receive an email with the information that they had come into contact with a positive COVID case, followed by a description of why or why not the student would need to be quarantined. Often, if the student had been wearing a mask, they would not be considered a close contact and would not need to quarantine. Now, according to a reference posted on TTSD’s website, contact tracing will only be applicable if a person has “contact for 15+ minutes and within 6 feet of a positive case AND did not consistently mask (i.e.. lunch).” 

Students who cannot/refuse to wear a mask will be traced, as well as students who are immunosuppressed, regardless of mask status at the time of exposure. 

In addition to contact tracing being altered, so have the quarantine requirements for students possibly exposed and/or experiencing symptoms. The information provided below is a summary of what is posted on the district website. For a comprehensive guide of what actions to take depending on your exposure, visit ttsdschools.org/Page/1061. 

A student who tests positive for COVID will be expected to complete a five-day quarantine, being permitted to return to school so long as symptoms have improved and the student has been without a fever for at least 24 hours, unless the student is unable to wear a mask, in which case they must quarantine for 10 days. If a student is experiencing symptoms, regardless of whether or not they are vaccinated or have a known exposure, they are to complete a five-day quarantine, as well.  

Students who are vaccinated or have had COVID in the last 90 days, however, are permitted to continue attending school if they have had contact with a known positive case, regardless of whether the case is in or outside the home. This rule is not applicable to unvaccinated students, who must complete a minimum of a five-day quarantine with a negative test, or a 10-day quarantine without a test.  

Additionally, TTSD, while continuing to update the dashboard for cases within the district, has halted updating whether or not cases were contracted at school. As of the week of Jan 24. there are currently 238 positive cases among students, with 618 students in quarantine, and an additional 28 staff positive cases. 

With a more contagious variant on the rise, it is crucial to the continuation of the health and safety and students and staff that everyone remains vigilant when it comes to monitoring their symptoms, properly wearing a mask and making the right decisions for them when it comes to social outings in order to limit the spread of Omicron throughout the community.