Random COVID Testing begins in October for Blended Students & Staff. Families: send in consent forms!

Random COVID Testing begins in October for Blended Students & Staff. Families: send in consent forms!

Please read the Chancellor's Updatedated September 29, 2020 on our Return to Schools 2020 page of the school website.

Download the Student COVID-19 testing consent form and return signed with your Blended student.

One crucial element of our approach to keeping everyone safe as the year unfolds will be random monthly testing of students and staff for COVID-19 in school buildings. That’s why we have partnered with NYC Health + Hospitals, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the NYC Test & Trace Corps to arrange for testing of NYC DOE students and staff for COVID-19 infection.

The Chancellor's Update letter incluedes an FAQ that describes this initiative, along with a consent form that families need to sign and return in order for us to administer a COVID-19 test to their student. It is vital that we receive as many consent forms as possible, so we strongly urge families to comply with this request. We know there will be many questions, and we are hopeful that these documents will answer them.

Translations are availble in Chinese, Korean, Bengali and Spanish.

Beginning in October, our testing partners will test a randomly selected group of staff and students in schools once per month. The number of children and staff to be tested each month will depend on the size of the school population. In addition to the random monthly testing, we are also working hard to offer in-school testing later this year for students who are showing symptoms of COVID-19, or are a confirmed close contact of someone in the school who has tested positive. The test is easy, quick, and safe. This test is a short, small swab (like a Q-Tip) that goes just in the front of the nose, instead of the “long swab” that goes in the back of the nose. Later this school year, it is possible that tests will be administered by collecting a small amount of saliva (spit).

Read more on the DOE site here: https://www.schools.nyc.gov/school-year-20-21/return-to-school-2020/health-and-safety/covid-19-testing