The Salt Lake County Health Department and Canyons District are holding a “Test to Stay” event at Willow Springs Elementary as a result of the COVID-19 case counts associated with the school.
The Test to Stay event at Willow Springs Elementary will be Thursday, Oct. 7, 2021, starting at 9 a.m.
The tests will be done by the Utah Department of Health.
While state law eliminated CSD’s ability to enforce a mask mandate, it does provide for a testing process if case counts reach a certain threshold. Under Senate Bill 107, If a school with fewer than 1,500 students, such as Willow Springs Elementary, reaches at least 30 positive cases, then the school will hold a Test to Stay event.
In this detection and prevention effort, students are given rapid-antigen tests at the school during school hours.
This process identifies those who are asymptomatic spreaders of COVID-19 and removes them from the environment, thereby reducing the risk of school-based exposures.
After a school conducts a Test to Stay event, the school’s COVID-19 case counts resets to zero 10 days after the testing commences.
No student will be tested without parent consent. Parents of Willow Springs students are being sent online consent forms to complete and submit. The form was sent via email to Guardian No. 1 as listed in Skyward. If you need assistance receiving this email, please call CSD’s IT Help Desk at 801-826-5544.
Hard copy consent forms also are available at the school.
In order for the test to be done, parents must also provide consent and personal contact information for the health department system that is used to maintain the test result data. Here is the link if parents need to register their child: https://c19.health.utah.gov/surveys/?s=W3RJ9APYNN
Students who are offered rapid-antigen testing during a “Test to Stay” and:
- Test positive
Must isolate at home. They may return to in-person learning after they are done with their individual isolation periods
- Test negative
May continue with in-person instruction if they are not a close contact of a person who tests positive and do not have any symptoms of COVID-19.
- Choose not to get tested
Should not attend school in-person until Oct. 18, 2021. Students may return to in-person learning if they provide a negative test from a medical facility.
Questions? Please contact the Canyons District Office of Responsive Services at 801-801-826-5416.
