Dear Makom Community Families,
First of all, thank you so much for all the ways you have supported each other and all our kids through the pandemic. I am thrilled to share that our educators are 100% vaccinated and boosted, and our learners are 100% vaccinated since early January.
In light of those incredible rates of vaccination, current COVID numbers, and guidance from the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Makom Community will follow the PDPH recommendation to have masks be optional when the public schools do so. That may be as soon as tomorrow, and we are still awaiting confirmation of that.
Talking to kids about taking a break from masks
Some of our learners are THRILLED to drop their masks. Others are anxious. We will work hard to make sure, as always, that Makom is a place that encourages all our educators and learners to show up exactly as they are. If your child is going to continue masking, you have our full support for that. If your child will take breaks from masking until they get more comfortable unmasking, you have our full support for that, too. If your child is thrilled to ditch their mask, you have our full support for that, too!
Please help your child(ren) know that this is a break from masks. We do expect that future viral surges or new variants will send us back to relying on masking as a safety precaution. Let’s work together as a community now to lay the groundwork for this being a break from masks and not being done with them forever.
Parents in Makom
You’re invited in! Starting today, you are invited in when you pick up your child(ren). If you arrive before 5:30pm, please come in quietly as we’re still deep in our learning, singing, and playing. You are also invited to join us for Family Shabbat Celebrations. We are asking that all adults coming into Makom Community are vaccinated and boosted.
Symptom Checking & Screening
Please continue to closely monitor your family for COVID-like symptoms. In case of symptoms, please be fever-free for 24 hours (without fever reducers) and have a negative test to return to Makom programming in person. If your child develops COVID-like symptoms while they are at Makom and you haven’t already tested them, you can expect us to give you a call and ask you to bring them home for testing.
In case of close contact for a fully vaccinated (and boosted if applicable) student or educator, you CAN continue to attend Makom AND…
- Monitor closely for symptoms.
- Test on day 4 after exposure. (See note below on PCR & rapid testing.)
- If even one symptom appears, isolate at home and test. (See below for testing details.)
If your Makom student tested positive for COVID-19:
You can return after…
- 7 days AND a negative rapid test
OR
- 10 days in isolation, return to programming on day 11 (with symptoms resolving or resolved).
Testing.
Both rapid tests and PCR tests are helpful here. If you’d like to use a rapid for post-exposure or early symptomatic testing, please note that we are requiring two rapid tests 24 hours apart. Only one rapid test is needed for people who are a few days into symptoms or are testing after having had COVID to determine when to return.
- Testing after exposure
- Rapid test on day 4 and day 5.
OR
- PCR on day 4.
- Testing after COVID to exit isolation before 10 days
- PCR or rapid on day 7
Thank you for your help as we continue to find our next steps through the pandemic.