UPDATE: ADDED ROBBINSVILLE AND HAMILTON TWP SCHOOLS UPDATE TO BOTTOM OF THIS ARTICLE RATHER THAN START AN ADDITIONAL POST SEE BELOW:
March 11, 2020
ROBBINSVILLE, NJ (MERCER)–On Tuesday, March 10, 2020, Robbinsville Township and the West Windsor Health Department released a statement informing the community of an active public health investigation involving an office site located in Robbinsville Township.
A non-government employee of that office, which is not a municipal building, tested presumptive positive for COVID-19 (coronavirus). Test results from the New Jersey State lab are deemed presumptive until confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The West Windsor Health Department, which serves Robbinsville, is working with other health agencies in investigating a clearly defined group of people who came in contact with this individual, who is an employee of Mercer Bucks Cardiology-Jefferson University Hospitals at 1 Union Street in Robbinsville.
The male individual, who recently traveled to Italy, was asymptomatic when he returned to the workplace for one day on March 3, 2020. On March 4, the individual developed mild symptoms and did not return to the workplace. The practice closed the office immediately, advised staff to self-quarantine at home and implemented an enhanced cleaning process. The office remains closed.
The West Windsor Health Department was notified of the presumptive positive case of COVID-19 on Tuesday, March 10 and immediately took appropriate protective measures to prevent the spread of the virus. As an added precaution, building management is currently performing enhanced cleaning of the building’s common areas.
The Robbinsville OEM, Robbinsville Township Mayor Dave Fried and the West Windsor Township Health Department are dedicated to stopping the spread of COVID-19 and are working with dedicated teams of local, state and federal officials to ensure a safe community.
ROBBINSVILLE SCHOOLS:
March 11, 2020
Dear Parents and Community Members,
As we continue to take a proactive and precautionary approach, we have decided to cancel some larger scale school-related events so we can focus on keeping our buildings clean and healthy for student learning during the day. We will monitor these decisions as necessary; therefore, as of this date we are cancelling events through March 21, 2020.Again, we are actively communicating with our local health officials to guide us in our decision making. As we work through this challenge, please know we will provide updates as new information is available.
Please see the following events that will be cancelled and rescheduled if possible.
March 11th: Third Grade Recorder Concert, SES, 7 pm
March 13th: Fifth Grade Social, Pond, 7-9 pm
March 14th & 15th: FIRST Robotics Competition
March 15th: RHS Trivia Night, RHS, 4:30-8 pm
March 16th: Attitudes in Reverse Parent Education Night for grades 7-12, RHS, 7 pm
March 18th: Child Assault Prevention Program for First Grade Parents, 7 pm
March 20th: Sixth Grade Social, Pond, 7-9 pm
As always, we thank you for your support and partnership.
Kathie Foster, Superintendent
Robbinsville Schools
HAMILTON TOWNSHIP SCHOOLS:
Hamilton Township School District Coronavirus Preparedness
Hamilton, NJ. In the last week, the Hamilton Township School District (HTSD) participated in a numberof conference calls with the New Jersey Department of Health, as well as the New Jersey Department ofEducation (NJDOE). The culmination of these meetings have allowed us to coordinate efforts regardingeducating our students should a school or schools be required to close by order of the New JerseyDepartment of Health or the Hamilton Township Department of Health. It is important to note, that NOschool district may “independently” make the decision to close and have that day count toward the 180day requirement. Only in the event that a school district has a written directive from the Department ofHealth to close, can the day be counted if instruction is provided.If HTSD were required to close a school or the district by order of the New Jersey Department of Healthor Local Health Department, and our preparedness plan was implemented, remote learning from ourstudents’ homes would count toward the required 180 days of school. Departments, schools andemployees have worked together to develop plans and resources for instruction and operations of thedistrict. The Department of Curriculum and Instruction is currently working with the Department ofStudent Services and our professional teaching staff to ensure that the needs of all learners areaddressed within this plan. Our Business office is currently developing the necessary provisions forschool nutrition planning with our Food Service Provider (as required).Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Scott Rocco, explained that, “the NJDOE has issued guidance on ‘remotelearning’. The term remote learning is important because it takes into account that not all families havethe ability to connect to the Internet through a device, if a school or schools need to be closed. OnMonday, March 9th, building principals designated a time to ask students if they have a device andInternet access at home. This information was vital to the development of our remote learning plans.”
The survey reported that approximately 87% of students have both a device and online access at home.
At this time, HTSD has a systematic framework for preparedness planning aligned to expectations ofthe NJDOE, and we are finalizing the document for submission to the Mercer County ExecutiveCounty Superintendent. With this framework, our professional staff and administration are workingcollaboratively to develop a series of “remote” learning opportunities for our students that will offer acombination of on-line activities as well as traditional instructional activities (as required).Within the schools, HTSD continues to implement an enhanced daily cleaning and sanitizing plan.This cleaning uses a combination of both mechanical and chemical cleaning phases that are focusedon common touch points including door knobs, sinks, water fountains, computer keyboards, studentdesks, chairs, cafeteria tables, chairs, etc. Additionally, we have deployed more hand sanitizerdispensers throughout our facilities in order to provide our students and staff with continuous accessto disinfectants as needed.On March 2, 2020, HTSD established a webpage entitled Coronavirus Information on the district’swebsite and each school’s webpage. This page is continually updated with information andcorrespondence from the district. In addition to information being provided on the new webpage, Dr.Rocco has also communicated with faculty and staff through the district’s email system. One of themany concerns being addressed is that HTSD understands that the news about COVID-19 may bedifficult for our children to hear and they may have many questions. HTSD offered the followingresource from the National Association of School Psychologists on Talking to Children aboutCOVID-19 (Coronavirus): A Parent Resource. This resource offered guidelines on talking to childrenabout the coronavirus.Moving forward, HTSD encourages our school community to:• visit our website for updates as more information becomes available;• follow our Social Media feeds for updates @WeAreHTSD on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram;• update their contact information on the School Messenger and Parent Portal systems. If youhave not already completed the HTSD Back To School Portal, please make sure to do so byfollowing the directions here. We highly recommend that all parents/guardians provide theiremail and opt-in for district text updates;• cover your cough and sneeze into your sleeve (not your hands);• avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth (if possible);• wash your hands often with soap and water, for at least 20 seconds, especially if you arecoughing or sneezing.Please know that there is nothing more important to us than ensuring the health, safety and securityof our students, faculty, and staff. We will continue to collaborate effectively with our Township andState Health Departments. We look forward to continuing to partner with our community members andwill provide additional updates and information as it becomes available.If you have any questions or concerns about this information please contact Laura Geltch. We thank
you for your continued support and partnership.
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As we stated before at MidJersey.news keep calm and wash your hands just like the CDC has been saying. You should have been doing that anyway all the time to prevent spread of disease. Wash those hands.