The Grande Prairie Catholic School District has released their Back to School plan for the 2021-2022 school year. 

As schools pre-pare to welcome kids back, the safety and well-being of students and staff remains at the forefront of all their decisions on planning for re-entry. 

Many safety and hygiene practices will still be in effect, while they hopefully start to transition back to normal protocols that were in place prior to the pandemic. 

School procedures that will be in place for the start of the school year include: 

-The limiting of shared materials to the greatest extent possible.

-Minimizing the amount of personnel in the building. Parents and visitors will be required to book an appointment to enter the facility. 

-Field Trips, Sports Teams, and Extra-Curricular Activities will slowly transition to a full return, using the first month of school to establish routines and guidelines that support provincial guidelines.  

-School council meetings will begin online after which each school can determine whether online or in-person meetings best fit their needs.

-Child care centers will remain open.

-Site procedures will be in place for drop-off/pick-up that support student safety. This may include staggered drop-off/pick-up locations, assigned doors, and bus loading/unloading procedures.

-Only registered students will be allowed on buses, with valid buss pass for entry, assigned seating, and mandatory masking.

-The option for online schooling will still be available to families.

Supporting Wellness and Safety

-The Grande Prairie Catholic School District is recommending all staff and students wear a mask, particularly when physical distancing is difficult. However, masking will not be mandatory for students in the schools (unless we are directed to do so by a provincial authority). 

-Schools will continue to provide hand sanitizer stations and actively promote handwashing for students and staff. In addition, schools are encouraged to keep windows open and provide outside learning activities, when possible. Increased custodial services will continue, with emphasis on the disinfecting of high contact areas. 

-GPCSD will continue the practice of cohorting and physical distancing, as they seek to find a balance between meaningful learning experiences and the safety of students and staff.

-5 Food Services Nutrition programs, cafeterias, and canteens will continue to provide service. All students must wash their hands before and after eating – individuals should not share food. If a school is using a common lunchroom, all surfaces of the tables and chairs must be cleaned and disinfected.

-To honour the health privacy of individuals, GPCSD will follow the direction provided by the province and, thus, will not be notifying families of confirmed COVID cases in schools. They will continue to monitor daily absence levels at each school site.

-Alberta Health Services is hoping to make vaccines available in schools starting the week of September 7, 2021. Vaccines will only be administered to students born in 2009 or earlier, with a signed consent form. Parents will receive consent forms from schools.

-Students and staff will still be required to refer to the Alberta Daily Health Checklist to assess their current health status. Anyone with symptoms must stay home and seek health care advice by calling Health Link at 811, or their primary health care practitioner.

To view the complete Grande Prairie Catholic School District Back to School plan visit https://www.gpcsd.ca/apps/pages/2020-2021

Information provided by GPCSD