About

COVID-19 Information

Our Campus, Our Community: 2020–2021 Reopening Plan

These plans may be updated to comply with evolving applicable government health mandates. We will continue to follow the recommendations from the CDC and Pennsylvania Departments of Health and Education. We have sought, and will continue to seek, advice from area hospital- and university-based medical experts.

As we approach this year together as a school community, all members of the community—students, families, faculty, and staff—will be asked to commit to these shared goals and expectations:

1. Each of us has a responsibility to others in the community to adhere fully to the School’s health protocols and guidelines—staying healthy and safe this year will require a shared community effort.

2. All of us need to stay flexible as we respond as a school community to an unpredictable year. We are prepared at Ellis to shift to a fully remote mode of school if we need to at any point, and families must be ready for that possibility.

3. We all need to acknowledge, and accept, that school will look different this year—at Ellis, in Pittsburgh, and around the world—as we all weather this pandemic. These times ask much of all of us, and we will ride through them together with great success if we continue to practice patience, flexibility, and kindness and give each other grace. Our children will be watching all of us as we do so. Our greatest hope is that our students' memories of this year will be filled with moments of great learning, both about the academic content and skills that infuse our program, but also about how a caring community comes together in challenging times.

Given the ever-changing nature of public health guidance, regulations, and other circumstances related to COVID-19, these protocols are subject to change without notice.

The protocols include:

Daily symptom screening and temperature checks that families, faculty, and staff must complete at home and submit by 7:15 a.m. Individuals who fail or do not complete the screening but still arrive at school will immediately be sent home.
Face coverings required for students, faculty, and staff
Clear protocols for handling students/faculty/staff who develop coronavirus symptoms during the day, known exposures, and positive cases. We are employing increased nursing staff to support this.
Extensive hygiene practices, cleaning, and sanitation
Limitations on visitors—only students, faculty, and staff will be allowed on campus as we start the school year. We hope to be able to ease this restriction as the year progresses, depending on local virus conditions and guidelines.
Adherence to local health department requirements around travel

Please read the full health protocols below:

List of 10 items.

Daily Screenings

Screening for COVID-19 will happen every day BEFORE students, faculty, and staff arrive on campus. Ellis’ online health record system, Magnus, has created an app to assist our community in checking for COVID-19 symptoms at home. Each morning before 7:15 a.m., all students/families, faculty, and staff must go to the Magnus app and answer questions regarding COVID-19 signs and symptoms, including a daily temperature reading. Results must be submitted for every student and employee before entering the school. The app will let each person know if they are cleared to be on campus. If the results show that a person should not attend school, they must stay home and seek medical attention. Please do not send your child to school if they are sick or have signs and symptoms of COVID-19. We will not allow them to enter the campus and they will be sent home immediately. Faculty and staff will be held to the same standards.

Upon arrival at school, there will be staff guiding students into their divisions. Upper School (US) students/faculty/staff will enter only through the US entrance, Middle School (MS) students/faculty/staff will enter through the main reception area, and Lower School (LS) students/staff/faculty will enter through the open main gate. Everyone will be asked to maintain a social distance of at least six feet, wear a face covering, and sanitize their hands as they enter school. At each of the three entrances, a staff member will make sure the Magnus report has given the student/faculty/staff member permission to attend school for the day. If not, they will be pulled aside and sent home immediately. If cleared, students will head straight to their assigned first classroom for the day.

There will inevitably be some situations in which a student fails the screening test due to other known health conditions unrelated to COVID-19, such as a student already under the care of a physician for a persistent cough related to allergies. In such situations, a family must communicate directly with the School Nurse to provide required documentation from their child’s pediatrician and receive instructions about school attendance.

If a screening was not done at home, the student/faculty/staff member will be directed to the school auditorium where a School Nurse will assess that individual for signs and symptoms of COVID-19. They will be allowed to attend school if they pass the assessment. If they do not pass, they will be sent home immediately. The School Nurse will no longer complete the screening in such situations after the second occurrence, and that individual will be sent home immediately for the day on any future occurrences. In order for us to be able to remain safely at school together as a community, it is imperative that everyone takes full responsibility for completing the screening process at home every day.
Health Practices
We ask that all students, faculty, and staff follow health practices that reduce the spread of COVID-19 and other germs during school, including:
- Wash your hands frequently.
- Stay home if you are sick
- If you need to cough or sneeze, use a tissue, or cough and sneeze into your arm, not your hand. Turn away from other people.
- Use single-use tissues. Dispose of the tissue immediately.
- Wash your hands after coughing, sneezing, or using tissues.
- Do not touch your eyes, nose, or mouth (viruses can transfer from your hands and into the body).
- Do not share cups, glasses, dishes, cutlery, or water bottles.
Every classroom will have hand sanitizer to use before entering the classroom and exiting the classroom. Frequently touched surfaces will be cleaned regularly throughout the school day. At the beginning of the school year, students will be taught about these practices and signs will be placed around the school buildings to remind everyone to follow these steps to reduce the spread of germs.
If a Person Presents COVID-19 Symptoms on Campus

If faculty, staff, or students present COVID-19 symptoms during the school day, they must go straight to the School Nurse’s office. LS students will stop by the LS assistant desk and don a surgical mask (provided by the School) and sanitize their hands before going to the School Nurse’s office. Symptoms include at least one of the following: cough, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing OR two of the following: fever, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste/smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or stomachache. MS students, US students, staff, and faculty must stop at the entrance to the School Nurse’s office and don a surgical mask and sanitize hands before entering if they present these signs or symptoms.

At this time the School Nurse will don all necessary Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) to prevent exposure before assessing the patient. If the School Nurse finds the patient is presenting COVID-19 symptoms, they will be placed in a designated isolation room until they go home and the School Nurse will watch over them while in isolation. At this time an additional School Nurse-on-call will be called to help serve the other students on campus. If the symptomatic person is faculty or staff, they will go home immediately and seek medical attention. If the symptomatic person is a student, a parent or guardian will be contacted to inform them their child needs to be picked up from school as soon as possible and seek medical attention.

After the symptomatic person has left campus, the isolation room will be disinfected and left to dry before using it again. The symptomatic employee or student may only return to school after sending the School Nurse a note or email from their doctor indicating that they are cleared to return.
If a Person Comes in Contact with Someone with COVID-19

If faculty, staff, or students come in close contact with someone with COVID-19, they must stay home for 14 days after exposure. If symptomatic, they should contact their healthcare provider to arrange for testing. Exposed individuals who do not test positive for the virus will be allowed to return to campus after 14 days as long as they remain asymptomatic for the full 14 days post-exposure.
If a Student or Employee Learns that They Have a Confirmed Case of COVID-19

If any student or employee learns that they have a confirmed case of COVID-19, they must contact the School Nurse immediately (macleodl@theellisschool.org) and NOT return to campus, attend any school-related activities, or come into contact with any member of the Ellis community until approved to do so (see below). If a case is confirmed to be COVID-19, then the School Nurse must call the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) to report and follow their guidelines to determine a course of action. The Head of School will share information about exposure with the affected part of the school community while protecting the infected individual's confidentiality, and we will follow ACHD guidelines in terms of any required short-term closing of all or part of our school facilities in order to clean and disinfect the exposed area.

Infected faculty, staff, or students may not return to campus until they meet CDC criteria to discontinue home isolation: 3 days with no fever AND respiratory symptoms have improved AND it has been at least 10 days since symptoms appeared. Their doctor must provide documentation clearing them to return to campus. If faculty, staff, or students test positive for COVID-19 but have NO symptoms, they can return to campus 10 days after the test as long as they remain asymptomatic. A doctor must provide documentation stating they are cleared to return to campus.
Recent Travel

Members of the Ellis community are expected to adhere to guidelines from the Allegheny County Department of Health and the CDC regarding travel, including all quarantine guidelines, upon returning from travel outside our local area. We ask that families avoid any travel within 14 days before the start of school or during the school year that would take them to areas that would require quarantining, and avoid hosting visitors from those areas.
Face Coverings on Campus

All students, faculty, and staff will be required to wear face masks or shields at all times on campus. Masks are preferable, but shields are acceptable for students/adults who cannot tolerate masks. Students will be required to provide their own face coverings, but the school will have a backup supply of masks available for instances when a child’s mask or shield is lost or damaged. All students will have opportunities during the day to remove their face coverings, including while eating or drinking and playing or exercising outside.
Criteria for Closing School
The decision to dismiss school, shift to remote learning, or cancel school events is made in coordination with local health authorities. Schools are not expected to make decisions about dismissal on their own.

Scenarios for closing all or part of the campus may include:
- Faculty, staff, or students were at school with a confirmed case of COVID-19. Dismiss for 2–5 days for disinfecting all or part of the facilities and to allow the county to begin contact tracing.
- There is a substantial transmission of COVID-19 in the local community and government entities require that schools close as part of a community effort to slow transmission. If Allegheny County moves into the Yellow Phase of Pennsylvania’s COVID-19 process, we will evaluate whether or not to continue conducting school on campus.
Facilities Protocols

Non-essential personnel will not be permitted on campus. This includes but is not limited to parents/guardians, volunteers, prospective vendors, and salespeople.

Students in the Lower, Middle, and Upper Schools will remain separated during the school day. Mixing between grades will be kept to a minimum. Students will never spend indoor class time in groups larger than 25, with most groups being much smaller (9–15).

The campus will be deep cleaned and sanitized prior to the beginning of the school year and on a regular basis throughout the year. High touch surfaces and common spaces will be continually disinfected during the day, including water bottle filling stations, door handles, light switches, playground equipment, student desks, and bathrooms.

Students, faculty, and staff will be required to bring individual water bottles from home.

All individuals in the school will sanitize or wash their hands on a frequent basis. Hand sanitizer will be made available in all common areas, hallways, and in classrooms where sinks for handwashing are not available. Signage will be posted to remind students and staff of proper hygiene and social distancing protocols. Where needed, stickers will be placed on floors to mark six-foot intervals and define traffic flow.

Classrooms and common areas will be ventilated with an additional circulation of outdoor air when possible, using windows and doors. HVAC intakes and returns will be cleaned and disinfected regularly. Ventilation systems have been set to allow the maximum amount of fresh airflow.

High-traffic hallway use will be limited, by either staggering the end of classroom periods to reduce the number of students in the hallways simultaneously and designating some hallways for one-way traffic. All students will be required to wear face coverings at all times in the hallways.

Only products that are approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for use against COVID-19 will be used to disinfect.

Two nursing areas have been established, one for suspected COVID-19 isolation and one for other students needing medical attention. These areas will be disinfected throughout the school day.
Updates to Protocols

As local, state, and federal guidance changes in response to the pandemic, any requirements imposed by these government bodies will supersede plans created by The Ellis School.

We will operate in accordance with mitigation practices of small group sizes, limited mixing between groups, reduced numbers in common spaces such as hallways and bathrooms, and social distancing. These practices will vary based on the ages of the students, and they are outlined more specifically in plans for each division:

Plans for bussing are still being developed by the relevant local public school districts, and our understanding is that they will be shared directly with families by those entities. We have not received any information about routes or schedules, and encourage families to contact their local school districts with any transportation questions. We have received some preliminary information from Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) about health protocols for their busses, which families can access below:

Arrival/Dismissal Procedures

Arrival and dismissal procedures have been revised to eliminate congestion and ensure that no student attends school who has failed the daily screening.

List of 2 items.

Arrival Procedures
The daily arrival process this year is designed to ensure that every student entering campus has completed and passed the required daily screening. This is a crucial step in reducing the likelihood of exposures or cases on campus. Families must complete this screening using the Magnus App by 7:15 a.m. each morning. This will allow us to have an accurate list of students who may not attend school that day.
If students come to school who have not completed the screening or failed it—regardless of the time they arrive on campus—they will not be allowed to go to their classrooms, but rather will be directed to the School Nurse. If the student has completed but failed the screening, they will be isolated and sent home immediately. If the student has not completed the screening, the School Nurse will do the screening on campus. However, we will provide this on-campus screening only two times for any one student. If a third time occurs, the student will be sent home immediately. Please see the full health protocols for further details.

The arrival procedures are as follows:
- All students are required to wear face coverings as they enter campus.
- Parents may not accompany students onto campus, with the exception of parents of pre-kindergarten students, who may walk them to the entrance of their classrooms and must wear face coverings. All other parents must remain in cars. Staff will greet younger students at cars to welcome them. Parents who walk or bike with their child to school can accompany them to the main gate but may not enter campus, and must wear face coverings.
- Families are asked not to bring students to school until 7:45 a.m. to give us time to receive the daily screening information from all students.
- Students who must arrive before 7:30 a.m. (e.g., students riding busses with early routes) may only enter at the main reception desk. They will be directed to the auditorium where they will be seated with social distancing, and they must continue to wear their face coverings while supervised by a staff member. At 7:30 a.m., the School Nurse will check that they have completed and passed the daily at-home screening. If they have, Middle and Upper School students will be released to their classrooms immediately and Lower School students will be released at 7:45 a.m.
- Students arriving between 7:45 and 8:00 a.m. will enter through designated entrances, with social distancing, by division—Lower School through the main gate, Middle School through the reception area, Upper School through the main Upper School entrance. All other access points will be inaccessible for entry.
- Staff will be at each of the three entry points and will check that students have completed and passed the daily screening. Students who have not completed or passed the daily screening will be directed to the School Nurse in the auditorium. The main gate to the courtyard will be closed at 8:05 a.m., after which Lower and Middle School students must enter by, and check in with, the School Receptionist, and Upper School students must enter through the Upper School entrance and check in with the Upper School Division Assistant. For all late arrivals, the staff will check that the student has completed and passed the daily screening. If not, they will be directed to the School Nurse.
Dismissal Procedures
We will have a staggered dismissal between 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. this year.

Car Line Dismissal

Car line dismissal times will be based upon a student’s age and division, with younger students dismissing first. Families are expected to follow the schedule below to reduce congestion and to ensure the health and safety of the community. Cars will not be allowed to enter the driveway or parking lot outside of their assigned window.
- Pre-kindergarten: 2:30–2:45 p.m.: Pre-kindergarten families arrive in the car line and pre-kindergarten students are escorted to cars from classrooms as soon as families arrive.
- Kindergarten to Grade 4: 2:45–3:05 p.m.: Families of students in kindergarten to grade 4 arrive in the car line and students are escorted to cars from classrooms as soon as families arrive.
- Middle and Upper School: 3:10–3:25 p.m.: Families of Middle and Upper students arrive in the car line no earlier than 3:10 p.m. and Middle and Upper School students walk outside to the car line.
PLEASE NOTE: Families with students in multiple divisions should contact a Division Assistant for instructions on a pick-up time to accommodate the difference in end-of-day class schedules.

Bus Dismissal
We are waiting for additional transportation information from public school transportation offices and will update you as soon as possible with details on bus dismissal times.

Upper School sports teams will launch with a week of preseason practices during the week of August 10. We have made the difficult decision to delay the start of our Middle School sports team practices until the week of September 8, and to limit those teams to two practices per week with scrimmages between Ellis teams but no contests involving other schools for the fall season. We will reevaluate for the winter season as the year unfolds. This was a difficult decision made after much thought, conversation with peer schools, examination of transportation issues related to bus/van availability and protocols during this pandemic, and consideration of challenges in maintaining appropriate health practices with multiple visiting teams in the Middle School grades.

For all Ellis athletics, we will be following these comprehensive health and safety guidelines:

List of 11 items.

Mandates
The Ellis School Athletics Office will follow the recommendations and mandates from the federal, state, and local governments, CDC, and Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH), as well as the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) and Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) to safeguard the participants and staff of our athletic programs. We realize knowledge regarding COVID-19 is constantly changing, as new information and treatments become available. The guidelines below will be adjusted as needed as new mandates or recommendations become available in order to decrease the risk of exposure for our staff, students, and spectators.

Mandates:
- All sports-related activities (conditioning and practicing) occurring in the Green Phase will have a strict limitation of up to 25 participants per session. This number includes Ellis team members and coaching personnel.
- Conditioning and practicing should occur outdoors when possible. In cases of inclement weather, conditioning and practicing will be held inside the athletic facilities under strict social distancing practices.
- All student-athletes and staff will be required to observe healthy hygiene practices to limit the spread of COVID-19, including:
Individuals Presenting Symptoms of COVID-19 or a Positive Test
- If coaches, staff, or students present COVID-19 symptoms during sports participation, they must go straight to the Certified Athletic Trainer. Symptoms include at least one of the following: cough, shortness of breath, or difficulty breathing OR two of the following: fever, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste/smell, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, or stomach ache. Athletes, coaches, and staff must don a surgical mask and sanitize hands before seeing the Athletic Trainer if they present these signs or symptoms.
- If the Certified Athletic Trainer finds that an individual is presenting COVID-19 symptoms, they will be placed in a designated isolation space until they go home and the Certified Athletic Trainer will watch over them while in isolation. If the symptomatic person is a coach or staff member, they will go home immediately and seek medical attention. If the symptomatic person is a student, a parent or guardian will be contacted to inform them their child needs to be picked up from school as soon as possible and seek medical attention. Should this happen during an away game, it will be a parent’s responsibility to pick up their child, as they will not be allowed to ride home on the team bus or van.
- After the symptomatic person has left campus, the isolation room will be disinfected and left to dry before using it again. The symptomatic employee or student may only return to school after sending the School Nurse and Athletics Office a note or email from their doctor indicating they are cleared to return.
- If faculty, staff, or students come in close contact with someone with COVID-19, they must stay home for 14 days after exposure. If symptomatic, they should contact their healthcare provider to arrange for testing. Exposed individuals who do not test positive for the virus will be allowed to return to campus after 14 days as long as they remain asymptomatic for the full 14 days post-exposure.
- If any student or employee learns that they have a confirmed case of COVID-19, they must contact the School Nurse immediately and NOT return to campus, attend any school-related activities, or come into contact with any member of the Ellis community until approved to do so (see below). If a case is confirmed to be COVID-19 then the School Nurse must call the Allegheny County Health Department (ACHD) to report and follow their guidelines to determine a course of action. The Head of School will share information about exposure with the affected part of the school community while protecting the infected individual's confidentiality, and we will follow ACHD guidelines in terms of any required short-term closing of all or part of our school facilities in order to clean and disinfect the exposed area.
- Infected faculty, staff, or students may not return to campus until they meet CDC criteria to discontinue home isolation: 3 days with no fever AND respiratory symptoms have improved AND it has been at least 10 days since symptoms appeared. Their doctor must provide documentation clearing them to return to campus. If faculty, staff, or students test positive for COVID-19 but have NO symptoms, they can return to campus 10 days after the test as long as they remain asymptomatic. A doctor must provide documentation stating they are cleared to return to campus.
Screening
- Screening for COVID-19 will happen every day BEFORE students, faculty, and staff (including coaching staff) arrive on campus. Ellis’ online health record system, Magnus, has created an app to assist our community in checking for COVID-19 symptoms at home. Each morning before 7:15 a.m., all students/families, faculty, and staff must go to the Magnus App and answer questions regarding COVID-19 signs and symptoms, including a daily temperature reading. Results must be submitted for every student and employee before entering the school. The App will let each person know if they are cleared to be on campus. If the results show that a person should not attend school, they must stay home and seek medical attention. Please do not send your child to school if they are sick or have signs and symptoms of COVID-19. We will not allow them to enter the campus and they will be sent home immediately. Faculty and staff will be held to the same standards.
- Screenings will also be required for athletes and coaches before any practices or games that occur on weekends or during school breaks.
Arrival Time

Team members must arrive within a 20-minute window before practice begins, but no earlier than 20 minutes to avoid gathering of athletes together on campus.
Conditioning/Practice Plan
- Coaches MUST participate in a Zoom training call with Ellis’ Director of Athletics no later than one week prior to the first day of the team’s workout.
- Workouts may be team-related but will involve individual skill development, cardiovascular training, and non-contact activities as much as possible.
- Coaches MUST tailor their training sessions towards individual development that maintains social distancing as much as possible.
- Athletes should remain six feet apart anytime they are not in a drill.
Hydration
- Each athlete must provide their own water bottle and a container large enough to provide water for the entirety of the session.
Locker Room/Restrooms/Personal Belongings
- During pre-season, team members must come dressed for practice.
- When school is in session, team members will have a strict two-minute limit to change in the locker room from their school clothes into their practice clothes.
- Team members must have their own athletic bag to keep personal belongings and training equipment neat and tidy and confined to one space.
Equipment Usage

Shared equipment will be limited as much as possible. When equipment must be shared, disinfecting will occur in between uses. This responsibility will fall on the head coach to disinfect equipment each day.
Spectators

There will be no spectators permitted at any conditioning workouts, practices, or competitions. Team members and athletic staff only.
Weight Room
- A maximum of two individuals at any given time will be permitted in the weight room.
- Individuals must wash their hands prior to using weight room equipment.
- Masks are required at all times while in the weight room.
- A maximum of 30 minutes will be allowed for each individual.
- Each person is responsible for wiping down all equipment before and after use.
Transportation
- Modifications for team transportation to and from athletic events may be necessary based on the current Pennsylvania Department of Education guidelines.
- This may include:
- All individuals will be required to wear face coverings while on the bus or van.

Our food service company, Metz, will provide individually packaged snack and lunch options that must be pre-ordered using a Metz app. No cash payments will be accepted on campus. Details about ordering will be sent separately in early August. Students may also bring snacks and/or lunch from home. Breakfast will not be available this year. Snack and lunch will be eaten in small grade-level groups in assigned classrooms, with social distancing and adult supervision.

Because we will not be able to eat in the cafeteria and provide nut free tables, we will be operating as a nut free campus this year. Any food brought by students from home must be nut free in order to protect our students and staff with severe nut allergies.

Other School Programs/Services

List of 3 items.

Extended Day Program

We will be offering our Extended Day Program during our usual hours, following the same mitigation and health protocols that we will be using during the school day. Given our initial policy on limiting the number of outside visitors and reducing mixing between grades, we will not be able to offer any After-school Adventures this fall, but we hope to restart those later in the year. We will be offering some virtual After-school Adventure programs this fall. Details and registration information for Extended Day and those remote After-school Adventure options will be available in early August.
Ellis Music Academy

Individual after-school music lessons will not be offered in person on campus this year; however, families will have the option of arranging individual lessons remotely from home with music instructors who have been part of the Ellis Music Academy. For more information, please reference the Ellis Music Academy resource board in MyEllis. We will plan to restart lessons on campus for the 2021–2022 school year.
Student Travel and Field Trips

Given current international travel restrictions, we have canceled all Upper School international trips for the school year, and we will be re-evaluating our Middle School out-of-state trips well in advance of those late spring travel dates. Local field trips will be minimized and only take place if we are confident that appropriate health protocols can be followed.

Visitors and School Events

In order to minimize the risks of exposures or cases on campus, we will give the highest priority this fall to having students, faculty, and staff together safely on campus. This requires that we limit visitors, including parents, speakers, prospective families, and college representatives. We are well aware that this is a significant tradeoff but know it is a vital piece of the mitigation puzzle. We will be providing alternative ways to connect, and we will certainly lift these restrictions should local conditions and guidelines indicate it is safe to do so. Limitations on visitors and group gatherings will also mean that many of our planned events for parents will be reimagined as virtual events. These changes will be reflected on the school calendars on MyEllis and Google, as well as communicated directly through division newsletters.

Shifting to Fully Remote School

If local conditions or mandates require that we fully close our campus and move entirely to remote learning, we are well prepared to do so. The remote program would again utilize Zoom video sessions, as we did this past spring, but the schedule within all divisions will involve a fuller schedule of synchronous classes. We will continue to utilize Unified Classroom/Powerschool as our online platform in the Middle and Upper Schools and will use a combination of SeeSaw and Google Classroom in the Lower School. Information about these platforms will be shared with all students and families as part of the back-to-school division communications.