North Tama Families,
In an effort to inform the school community community of the impact of COVID-19 on our district, we plan to share as much information as possible while protecting the privacy of those affected.
In the event that a student or staff member comes into close contact with a positive individual in the school setting, the family can expect to receive an individual phone call from Tama County Public Health and/or the school principal as soon as possible following identification of a positive case. Close contact is defined as anyone who has been within 6 feet of the individual for fifteen consecutive minutes or more.
In addition to individual telephone contacts received by those meeting the definition of close contact, all North Tama families will be notified via email when the school becomes aware that an individual that has tested positive for COVID-19 has been in the school building.
So that families don't miss out on any critical information, It is imperative that families answer telephone calls from public health and the school, and that parents promptly return any messages. It is equally important for all families to provide the school with one or more current email addresses, and that parents check their "spam" and "junk" folders and take any necessary steps to adjust email settings to ensure these emails are received.
In addition to the email notification and individual telephone calls described earlier, North Tama has created a "Data Dashboard" on the district website. The dashboard can be accessed at this link, or by visiting the district website at www.ntredhawks.org and selecting "Data Dashboard" from the "Return to Learn" pull-down menu.
In a smaller school district like North Tama, breaking down data into smaller groups such as grade levels, teams, or employee classifications, or providing updates more frequently than once each week may make certain individual cases easily identifiable, which may constitute a violation of FERPA. It is the district's intent to update these numbers once each week and post this information to the district website.
Please know that these efforts will be a work in progress and our district will make adjustments as we learn more during this pandemic. We share this news with you so you can make well-informed decisions for your family.
North Tama Administration
Susan Olson, Elementary Principal
Andrew Meister, Secondary Principal
David Hill, Superintendent
