COVID-19 Surveillance Testing

Dear Families and Caregivers,

Atlanta Public Schools (APS) is continuing its effort to keep everyone in our schools and buildings safe by making COVID-19 Surveillance Testing available to all students and staff. COVID-19 Surveillance Testing is a non-diagnostic test that detects the presence of COVID-19 even in individuals who may be asymptomatic. The benefits of surveillance testing include early detection of positive individuals to limit the spread of COVID-19 in our schools and buildings, as well as, rapid results and notifications for impacted individuals within 24 hours of testing. This allows for parents and staff to make informed decisions regarding healthcare and taking the needed precautions prior to coming to school or work.

Our school has been selected as one of the first schools to launch COVID-19 Surveillance Testing on-site soon. APS is working with our school leadership team and Viral Solutions, the vendor, on mapping out the logistics and protocols of how testing will be made available for all. Currently, the district plans to make testing available once per week. While participation in surveillance testing is not required for students, it is strongly encouraged. Parents who want their children to be tested must sign a consent form` that would cover their child for one year. That consent form will be made available soon.

We are looking for high levels of staff and student participation and believe that this mitigation strategy will help drive the ability to keep our staff and students safe and in school.  You can learn more about COVID-19 Surveillance Testing by reviewing the FAQs on our website.

Thank you for your commitment to keeping our APS Community healthy and safe. For more information and updates on the District’s health and mitigation strategies, visit www.atlantapublicschools.us/APSProtects. For more details on our return to in-person learning, visit www.atlantapublicschools.us/reopen.

Sincerely,
Jay Bland
Principal, Morris Brandon Elementary School