The Biddeford & Dayton School Departments will use this page to keep families informed of developments related to COVID-19 and how our schools are responding.  Our district is committed to following all Maine CDC and DOE guidance as we consider the overall public health for the entire school population, the risk of increased quarantines or a shutdown due to outbreak, and halting all participation in school activities or sports. It is imperative we all do our part so please remember to:

• Do the self-screening at home (signs and symptoms linked here), keep your child home when sick, and report any symptoms or positive COVID results to the School Nurse, and;

• Send your child off to school with a mask (or two!) as we require universal masking - indoors and on busses/vans - for all, regardless of vaccination status.

Pooled Testing, BinaxNOW Rapid Testing, and Vaccine Clinics:

• Please see our Nurse/Health Information webpage for the latest information on testing, links to consent forms, and scheduled vaccine clinics.

Federal Funding:

ESSER III - American Rescue Plan - Use of Funds Plan
ESSER III - Budget Overview - Updated March 13, 2023

Authoritative Resources:

1. COVID-19 Fact Sheets: Arabic, French, Kinyarwanda, Lingala, Portuguese, Somali, Swahili

2. Maine Department of Education Standard Operating Procedures

3. Maine Centers for Disease Control

4. U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

5. Check Travel Advisories if considering travel.

6. For Families of Non-native Speakers of English

7. Keeping Families and Children Safe During COVID-19 (multiple languages)

8. Maine’s 2-1-1 Phone System now has COVID-19 info

9. Safety Data Sheet related to COVID

Prevention Tips:

1. Avoid close contact.
   Avoid close contact with people who are sick. When you are sick, keep your distance from others to protect them from getting sick too.

2. Stay home when you are sick.
   If possible, stay home from work, school, and errands when you are sick. This will help prevent spreading your illness to others.

3. Cover your mouth and nose.
   Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. It may prevent those around you from getting sick. Flu and other serious respiratory illnesses are spread by cough, sneezing, or unclean hands.

4. Clean your hands.
   Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub.  We have installed hand sanitizing stations around our schools.

   • Handwashing: Clean Hands Save Lives

   • Tips on hand washing and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers

   • Hand washing resources from the It’s A SNAP program, aimed at preventing school absenteeism by promoting clean hands. From the School Network for Absenteeism Prevention, a collaborative project of the CDC, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the American Cleaning Institute.

5. Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
   Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.

6. Practice other good health habits.
   Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces at home, work or school, especially when someone is ill. Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids, and eat nutritious food.