On Tuesday, February 15, 2022, the Bethel Hill Charter School Board of Directors held their monthly meeting and voted unanimously to update our current Mask Policy to a mask optional policy for students, staff and visitors effective Monday, February 21, 2022. We will continue to provide masks for students who request them. By federal executive order, masks will continue to be mandatory for all students and staff on school buses. In the event school metrics for COVID-19 cases/quarantines rise, the board will re-visit this policy and make adjustments as needed.
Due to the updated COVID-19 mitigation strategies outlined in the NC Strong Schools Toolkit also effective Monday, February 21, 2022, BHCS will no longer contact trace and exclude asymptomatic students and staff - whether the close contact is in school, the household, or in the community. We will not be contacting close contacts on an individual basis, but shift to broaden our communications and notify an entire class if there is a positive case. Parents may still choose to quarantine out of precaution, but it will no longer be required.
The Bethel Hill Charter School Board of Directors and administration are hopeful that everyone will continue to practice safety measures and strongly encourage those who want to wear a mask to continue to do so. Additionally, please continue to monitor students for COVID-19 symptoms and if/when a student is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, do not send them to school. Symptomatic students will still have to stay home and either produce a negative COVID-19 test, have a note from a healthcare provider stating a safe return date, or stay home 5 days from the onset of symptoms.
Thank you for your support as we continue to stay up-to-date in effective and appropriate COVID-19 mitigation strategies to ensure a safe environment for face-to-face instruction.