Attention Parent/Guardians: The Carrier Mills-Stonefort School District has obtained a CLIA waiver to be able to administer the BinaxNOW antigen test. This is voluntary and will only be available to students WITH parent/guardian permission.
Our #1 Goal to start this school year is to get all of our students back in school for in-person learning and keep them in-school for as long as possible. That is why we are following the CDC/IDPH guidelines and wearing masks while indoors, practicing social distancing (at least 3-feet apart), encouraging hand sanitation as frequently as possible, asking our students to stay home if they do not feel well, and cleaning the entire school each night.
However, we are currently seeing an increase in coronavirus cases across the state, including southern Illinois. If we have a positive COVID-19 test, the school has to perform contact tracing to see if anyone was a close contact to this positive test. If your child/young adult wears their mask properly the entire time they are in class, they will not be asked to quarantine as long as they are not displaying any symptoms of COVID-19. If they wear a mask properly and they are vaccinated, they will not be asked to quarantine if they are not displaying symptoms
If you want your child/young adult to remain at school after being a close contact, you can sign the COVID-19 Testing Form to allow the school nurse to test them. This form can be found on the school website and in the Grade School and High School offices. Students will be tested on days 1, 3, 5, and 7 from the date of their possible exposure. As long as the results are negative and the student is not showing any symptoms of the coronavirus, these students are permitted to remain in the classroom.
Again, this "Test to Stay In School" program is completely voluntary. The parent/guardian can choose to quarantine their student for 10-14 days or allow them to be tested at school.
If you have any questions about this testing, please contact the school and ask for Mrs. Shaina Craig (school nurse), or the building administrators (Mr. Jerrell, Mr. Kerley, Mrs. Kuhlmann, and Mrs. McGuire).
Have a wonderful day!