TEST TO STAY

D65 is partnering with SHIELD to offer students a Test to Stay option if they are not fully vaccinated and identified as a close contact to an individual with COVID-19. A student who is not fully vaccinated and identified as a close contact for an in school exposure may remain in school if they participate in the Test to Stay program and are tested twice during the period between close contact notification/TTS enrollment and day 7 after exposure, with the last test occurring 5-7 days after last close contact from date of exposure. Only students who had an in-school exposure may participate in Test to Stay. Vaccinated students do NOT need to quarantine or participate in Test to Stay unless they become symptomatic.

Please make sure you have sent a copy of your child’s COVID-19 vaccination card to your school’s health office. 

test to stay location

SHIELD will provide daily testing at our testing location, Joseph E. Hill Education Center (1500 McDaniel Ave, Evanston) in the Boardroom, weekday mornings from 7:30 a.m.-9:00 a.m. Parents/guardians are responsible for bringing their child to JEH for testing on the designated days during this timeframe. Currently, Test to Stay testing is not available in schools except for their regularly scheduled days. We are working toward making Test to Stay available in all schools so that parents won’t have to transport and we will keep our community updated as we are able to broaden our testing capacity.

Requirements for participating in test to stay

While students participating in Test to Stay may attend school (as long as they have not received a positive result or are experiencing symptoms), there are some restrictions. Students:

• • Should not ride the school bus or public transportation for 10 days
  • May not attend indoor extracurricular activities for 10 days (this includes before/after school care)
  • May not attend or participate in sports of any kind for 10 days
  • May attend outdoor extracurricular activities with diligent masking and social distancing of at least 6 feet. If consistent masking or social distancing at 6 feet is not possible, then do not attend the extracurricular activity.
  • Should be diligent in proper masking at all times
  • Social distance at 6 feet as much as possible
  • Should eat lunch 6 feet away from others for 10 days post exposure
  • Closely monitor for development of symptoms for 10 days post exposure  
  • STAY HOME if symptoms develop, notify school nurse

When arriving at JEH (follow posted signage), your child will need their QR Code in order to test. SHIELD is no longer accepting dates of birth at the time of testing. You may ask your school's health office for your child's QR code if you don't have it yet. After testing, please make sure they take a yellow testing slip to turn into their school’s office when they arrive at school. If your child participates in SHIELD testing at school, they should already be registered in SHIELD’s system and have a QR Code. If you have previously OPTED OUT of SHIELD testing but want to participate in Test to Stay, you will need to ask your school’s health office to register your child in SHIELD’s testing and reporting system prior to participating.  As long as test results come back NEGATIVE, your child can remain in school. If your child receives a POSITIVE test result or develops symptoms (even with a Negative result), they will need to be excluded from school for the appropriate amount of time.

Updated February 8, 2022