Health Policies

Read AZ Aspire Academy’s Health Policies

*Please note that AZ Aspire Academy’s policies are being guided by CDC and MCDPH guidelines and are therefore subject to change at any time as updates and data evolve. *

At Home Before School

• Check your temperature at home before leaving for work. If it is at or above 100.4, please do not report to work and call your campus lead and/ or HR. Also check yourself for the following symptoms: a cough, sneezing, runny nose, fatigue, diarrhea, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting and/ or loss of taste/smell.
• Staff MUST arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of the school day at 8:45AM in order to get onto campus before students begin to arrive to prevent crowding at the front door.
• Please remember to bring your mask/ face shield to work each day. These will also be provided to you by your Campus Lead at the beginning of the year.
• We encourage staff members to keep personal items in their car during the work day for hygiene purposes.

Arriving at School

• Upon arrival, staff will have their temperature checked with a thermometer gun before entering the building. If a staff member’s temperature is at or above 100.4, they will be asked to continue their teaching duties for the day from home remotely or stay home sick.
• Designated staff members will be tasked with checking student temperatures at the door from a safe distance at the beginning of each school day and signing students in as they arrive. Parents are not permitted to sign their own student in due to best hygiene practices and must stay with their student until their student temperature comes back clear.
• Parents and students will be asked to either stay in their car or to distance six feet away from each other during sign in to abide by social distancing practices.
• All staff members who are not assigned with checking temperatures or signing in students at the door will need to be seated at their first period student’s work station prior to kids arriving in order to minimize contact with a large number of students.
• Each campus will be cleaned the night prior, so staff members should walk into a sanitized campus each morning.

During the School Day

• During the school day, all teachers will wear masks at all times. If teacher’s present a doctor’s note regarding the inability to wear a mask, they will wear a face shield instead.
• All students will be required to wear masks unless they fall within an exemption outlined by the CDC. Each student should have paperwork indicated in their personal files as to whether or not they fall within such exemption or whether they should be wearing a mask.
• During one-to-one classes, students will only be within six feet of their teacher and will be asked not to intermingle with other one-to-one instructors or students. At this time, students and teachers can distance the length of the desk in order to create distance.
• CDC mandated posters have been hung around each campus asking students and staff to wash their hands, socially distance, and to self-check for symptoms.
• Staff will need to continuously monitor students who are required to wear a face mask to try to ensure they have it on and covering their nose and mouth.
• Teachers will ensure that only one student uses or crowds outside of the restroom at a time, and restrooms will be sanitized throughout the day.
• No in-person clubs will be held during the Spring semester.
• Campus Leads will be monitoring the building to ensure social distancing on campus throughout the day.

Lunch

• Students will be storing lunch at their desks this year and eating in the lunch room or outside at a social distance from each other. Staff will monitor the lunchroom closely to ensure social distancing.
• There will be no community use of the refrigerators or microwaves on campus this semester.
• There will be no community use of the water fountains this year either, as all students and staff have been advised to bring water with them.
• Once students finish their lunch, a teacher or designated staff member will come by with a disinfecting wipe to sanitize their desk.

Group Classes

• All middle school or high schoolers participating in group classes on campus will be required to wear a face shield at all times during that group class, as students may not be distanced six feet apart at all times during this hour.
• If students who have a face mask exemption refuse to wear a shield during this hour, they will be asked to participate in group classes from their desks remotely.
• All elementary school group classes will have plexiglass dividers or social distancing measures implemented in group classrooms in lieu of face shields on our younger students.
• All group classes will be recorded (teacher only) and streamed ONLY to other students who are enrolled in AZ Aspire Academy’s online program.
• Staff will undergo a FERPA online training in order to ensure no FERPA protected information is discussed on camera during group classes

Masks

• As a result of various city ordinances in which our campuses are located, AZ Aspire Academy will be complying with the mask-wearing protocols requiring staff and students to wear a mask during school hours absent any CDC exceptions.
• All students should have paperwork in their file indicating whether they fall within a CDC exemption for wearing a face mask.
• As part of AZ Aspire Academy’s policy, all staff members will be required to wear a mask (or face shield with a doctor’s note) at all times if they will be interacting with students on campus.

Absence Policy

• For the Spring 2021 semester, the Attendance Policy will not apply to illness related absences. All illness related absences occurring in 2020 will be considered protected. The Attendance Policy will continue to apply non-illness related absences.
• If you have a question regarding an absence or specific instance, please contact HR directly.
• We are also encouraging our students and families to stay home for any and all symptoms, even if mild, and learn remotely for the day if they are feeling at all unwell.
• If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19, they will be asked to stay home for 10 days after the date of first symptoms or follow County or healthcare provider’s guidance on quarantining before return.

Every Day Best Practices

• Staff will be wearing masks and/ or face shields at all times during operating hours in order to maintain a safe and clean environment.
• Several staff members at each campus will be wearing an apron around campus this year with disinfectant, wipes, hand sanitizer, and other cleaning supplies to help our students and facilities stay clean.
• If a member of our staff is diagnosed with COVID-19, parents will be notified of such exposure via email and text message (if signed up for our text program). Any child who was taught by that teacher will receive additional notification. The campus where that staff member works will be shut down for a minimum of 24 hours for deep cleaning.
• Staff temperature will also be taken daily.
• Staff will be trained on heightened cleaning procedures, social distancing measures, and several other COVID-19 best practices that will be implemented at all AZ Aspire Academy locations.
• When feasible, no more than ten people should be within close quarters at a time without PPE equipment.
• When feasible, students will sit at every other desk and spread throughout different campus rooms and locations in order to abide by social distancing guidelines.

Online to In Person Transitions

• Students on campus may transition to our online program at any time, and vice versa. They will still be placed with their same teacher (absent exigent circumstances) and will still receive both one-to-one instruction as well as the option to participate virtually in our group classes.
• Staff members who have a student that decides to work from home on any day of the week will still report to school and will teach their remote class from campus.
• Staff members who are quarantining due to travel or exposure will teach from home unless their student requires one-to-one in person instruction, in which case another teacher will be assigned to that student for those ten days. This determination will be made by the Campus Lead each day.

Self-Reporting

• It is the duty and responsibility of each staff member and student to report any symptoms, diagnoses, and/ or exposure of themselves or their house members to any COVID-19 related illnesses. This accountability keeps both our staff and our students safe, informed, and aware.
• If a staff member reports their exposure to or diagnosis of COVID-19, other parents and staff will be notified, but the staff member’s name will remain confidential unless permission is granted to release personal information. This information will also be relayed to public health officials for tracing and reporting purposes.
• If staff is unsure whether they have been exposed to or diagnosed with COVID-19 but is demonstrating symptoms, please see the School Closure Policy above for instruction.
• Staff members who are demonstrating COVID-19 symptoms will be asked to go home and follow the School Closure Policy as well as the Calling Out Procedure provided to all staff.
• If a staff member notices a student has symptoms, they should notify their campus lead immediately.
• Staff members are required to call both their Campus Lead as well as Legal Operations (623-633-2883) to report symptoms, exposure, or test results throughout the Spring 2021 semester, and failure to do so may result in unexcused absences as well as a file note.
• Students who have been exposed or are experiencing symptoms are also asked to contact their Campus Lead for further instruction on quarantining and a return to school date for their student.

Staff

• Staff will be wearing masks and / or face shields with bandanas (if they cannot wear a mask) at all times during operating hours in order to maintain a safe and clean environment.
• Several staff members at each campus will be wearing an apron around campus this year with disinfectant, wipes, hand sanitizer, and other cleaning supplies to help our students and facilities stay clean.
• If a member of our staff is diagnosed with COVID-19, parents of that campus will be notified of such exposure via email, although the staff member’s name will remain anonymous. Any child who was taught by that teacher will receive additional notification. The campus where that staff member works will be shut down for 24 hours plus any additional time dictated by the Maricopa County Department of Public Health.

• If a member of our staff is exposed to someone with COVID-19, they will be teaching remotely until they get tested or wait the requisite quarantine period (14 days). Your student can still come to campus during this time. They will go to their desks and connect via computer with their instructor or will be placed with a new temporary instructor.
• Staff temperature will also be taken daily.
• Our staff has been trained on heightened cleaning procedures, social distancing measures, and several other COVID-19 best practices that will be implemented at all AZ Aspire Academy locations.

Cleaning

• Staff will be cleaning surfaces, sanitizing hands, and disinfecting computers and supplies constantly throughout the school day.
• Chromebooks will be disinfected each night after school.
• Restrooms will be cleaned by personnel constantly throughout the day.
• Our cleaning team will deep clean the campus 5 times a week once school concludes for the day to decrease the spread of germs.

Travel

• If a student or staff member travels outside of the US, we will ask them as a safety precaution to quarantine for ten days.
• For students, this means that they will be able to learn virtually for that ten days, then be welcomed back to campus.
• For staff members, we ask that they online teach for those ten days unless their students need one-toone instruction in person, at which point another teacher will take their students for those ten days.

• If a student or staff member travels within the US, quarantining procedures will be determined on the case-by-case basis by Campus Leads, Administration, and that student or staff member. This will be determined based on whether the CDC has identified a high community spread of coronavirus in the area that they traveled, the activities that were conducted, and the CDC guidelines that were followed.
• For more information on this, students and staff can visit the CDC’s FAQ for travelers.
• As an overarching policy, AZ Aspire asks that students and staff be mindful of where they are traveling, how often they are traveling, and what activities they partake in during those travels so that we can keep our staff and students safe.

Parent Questions

• If parents have questions or concerns regarding AZ Aspire policies or a specific instance on campus, please contact our Legal Operations Coordinator, Sierra Dodd ((623) 633-2883) or your Campus Lead.

• If parents have questions about the community spread of the virus or any other big picture inquiries, please visit the FAQ page and/ or help line at The Maricopa County Department of Public Health FAQ for Parents and Caregivers

Calling Out Procedure

• Staff members calling out for an illness-related absence must contact both their Campus Lead as well as Legal Operations to report symptoms and be advised of quarantine procedure (623-633-2883). Failure to do so will result in unexcused absences and/ or a file note.

• Parents of students calling out for an illness-related absence must contact their child’s Campus Lead to report symptoms and may be put in contact with our Legal Operations to complete a brief quarantine survey.