Dear FCPS Community,

FCPS staff are excited to welcome students for the 2021-22 school year! The majority of our 44,000+ students will be entering traditional classrooms on August 18 and we are also proud to serve over 1,000 students in our new Blended Virtual Program.

FCPS is committed to ensuring that students are able to regularly attend in-person instruction; therefore, we will continue to implement key preventive strategies to minimize the spread of COVID-19:

• Use of face coverings
• Hand hygiene
• Enhanced ventilation
• Cleaning protocols
• Staying home if exhibiting symptoms
• Contact tracing and quarantining

This year we will be welcoming students five days a week for in-person instruction and therefore are unable to provide social distancing among students. Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) have identified that having students being physically present in school is more important than ensuring social distancing.

After reviewing the guidance from CDC, AAP, the Maryland Department of Health, and working in close collaboration with the officials from the Frederick County Health Department, FCPS will be requiring face coverings for all students and staff inside our school buildings. This requirement allows us to support two priorities:

• Preserve in-person instruction for our students
• Prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our schools and community

The table below provides additional information about the rationale behind the decision to require masks in our schools as we reopen on August 18.

Additionally, it is important to consider recent research related to the Delta variant. The RO factor represents the number of people a single person with a virus is likely to infect. The Delta variant has a RO factor of 6-7 compared to these other infectious diseases:

                Typical strains of influenza           1.2-1.5

                Original SARS CoV-2                   2.0-2.5

                Chickenpox                                    10-12

Finally, local health officials provided us with key research related to the use of masks for both unvaccinated and vaccinated individuals as presented in the table below:

The situation with the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve. We will monitor health metrics and data in our schools and community to make decisions that support keeping our students safely attending face to face instruction. We will provide updates to the community on a regular basis.

One of the most effective prevention strategies for COVID-19 is vaccination. The quarantining requirements for those who are fully vaccinated differ than requirements for the unvaccinated. In the next Superintendent’s update, the quarantining protocols that will be in effect for the 2021-22 school year will be shared.  Avoiding quarantine is another important consideration for keeping students physically present in school buildings.

FCPS staff are anxiously awaiting the return of our students on August 18!