On Wednesday, Sept. 1, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) updated the COVID-19 guidance and requirements for K-12 schools, and on Tuesday, July 27, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated their guidance for schools.

The foundational principle of the CDPH guidance is that all students must have access to safe and full in-person instruction and to as much instructional time as possible. As such, in-person instruction can occur at OCSA without physical distancing so long as universal masking is in place. When students are present at school, students and staff are required to wear masks while indoors, regardless of vaccination status. Vaccinated individuals are permitted to be maskless when outside.

OCSA is committed to providing accurate and transparent information regarding COVID-19 cases on our campus, while also maintaining privacy and confidentiality for our students and staff. The graphic below reports active COVID-19 cases among OCSA students and staff on our campus. This data will be updated regularly and as cases are confirmed.

OCSA will continue to follow guidance from the CDPH and Orange County Health Care Agency for the safe operation of in-person learning.

OCSA has created a COVID-19 Reporting Form to help streamline the process for our OCSA community to know how and when to report a positive COVID-19 case.

You can access the form at any time by visiting www.ocsarts.net/COVID19Report. 

This form is to be used by OCSA faculty, staff, and students (or parents/guardians on behalf of students). This form is also available to parents, vendors, or visitors to the OCSA campus. Please be assured that OCSA will maintain confidentiality regarding any information submitted through this form and will protect student/staff privacy following established HIPAA and FERPA protocols.

Please complete this form if you, or your student, have been on the OCSA campus and:

• Have received a positive COVID-19 test

• Have had a possible exposure to COVID-19

• Are currently experiencing COVID-19 symptoms

Within 24 hours of completing this form, an OCSA Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) will contact you directly to begin contact tracing protocols established by the school. Please initiate self-quarantine until contacted by an OCSA LVN and further instructions are given. You may not return to the OCSA campus or interact with other OCSA students or faculty/staff members outside your immediate household during this time. If your symptoms become more severe, please seek immediate medical attention.

It is going to take a concerted effort to keep OCSA safe. Reporting positive COVID-19 tests, possible exposure to COVID-19, or COVID-19 symptoms will ensure timely notifications to individuals and our community. Additionally, accurate reporting will help slow the spread of the disease, protect our school and greater community, and support OCSA’s ability to keep our campus open.

Each time OCSA is notified through the COVID-19 Reporting Form of a positive case on campus related to a student, faculty/staff member, or community member, our Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs), who are certified in contact tracing, will determine the level of exposure and initiate one or more of the following notifications.

Close Contact Notification: Close contact is defined as being exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual at a distance of less than 6 feet for more than 15 minutes within a 24-hour period. Individuals identified within this group will receive notification from an OCSA LVN via phone call AND email. The LVN will provide the individual with key instructions regarding quarantine and related health care information.

Low Risk Notification: Low risk is defined as being indirectly exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual through a shared classroom or office space. Individuals identified within this group will receive notification from an OCSA LVN via email through Aeries Communications. The notification will include health care information related to monitoring potential symptoms; however, individuals within this group are not required to quarantine as long as they remain symptom free.

If you do not receive either a Close Contact or Low Risk Notification, it has been determined through contact tracing that you have not been exposed, and no action is required. Please note that the Community Notification, which was previously sent out to the entire OCSA community on days in which COVID-19 cases were reported on campus, will no longer be a part of our notification process. Instead, this COVID-19 Dashboard will serve as the primary resource for keeping our larger OCSA community informed on active case totals (see above).

Lastly, with each confirmed positive case, the OCSA Facilities Team will be notified as well. These professionals are trained to complete a deep cleaning of any exposure area(s) and are committed to keeping the OCSA campus safe.

Weekly COVID-19 testing is available to all faculty and staff, as well as to students and families as an extra health and safety resource. The school offers free testing clinics on the OCSA campus every Monday. All clinics will occur in the Symphony Hall lobby from 1:30-4:30 p.m. by appointment. Walkups may be possible based on availability.

The process to register for testing is as follows:

CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT

One Time Process

• Click here to visit the Global Virus Pass webpage and click “Sign Up.”
• Fill out your account information and click “Create Account.” 
• Confirm your account via email and log in.
• Once logged in, click on your name in the upper right and select “My Profile.”
• Complete your information as requested in the “General Information” and “Insurance Information” tabs.
• Click “My Circle” and click “Insert” to add any family members who would also like to receive COVID-19 testing.
• Once all family members have been added, click “Confirm.”
• Once your account is fully set up you can follow the steps below to make your appointment. 

MAKING AN APPOINTMENT

• Please make sure that you are logged in to Global Virus Pass first.
• Click here to make an appointment at OCSA
• Select "My Schedule."
• Select "By Facility."
• Select "Orange County School of the Arts."
• Select the type of test you wish to schedule.
• Select the date displayed under "Select a Date and Time Frame" to open the selection calendar.
• Select the date on the calendar you would like to schedule testing.
• Select an appointment time slot.
• Select which person you would like to schedule an appointment for (if you have added others to your circle). 
• Complete all forms, as necessary.
• Once all steps are completed, you will see a confirmation of your appointment. Click "Confirm" and "Send." You will receive an email confirmation as well.
• If you need to schedule another appointment for yourself, start this process over to return to your location's scheduling page.
• You can view your scheduled appointments by clicking on "My Schedule" and then clicking "History."

DAY OF TESTING

• By signing up through GVP, the patient will not need to bring anything with them on the day of testing.
• The patient will provide the nurse with their name and verify their date of birth at the time of testing.
• If anyone arrives to the test site without a prior appointment scheduled, the nurse will have a QR code available that the patient can scan to be brought directly to GVP to create their account and/or schedule their test.

In addition to health and safety measures taken on our campus, we encourage the OCSA community to be proactive in helping to limit the spread of COVID-19 by practicing physical distancing (staying at least six feet apart), maintaining good hygiene (hand washing), and wearing face coverings.

Important public health prevention measures include:

• For those who are vaccinated, follow the CDPH Fully Vaccinated People Guidance regarding quarantine.

• For those who are unvaccinated, follow the CDPH Safety Measures for K-12 Schools, particularly as stated in items 8 and 9.  As a reminder, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that everyone 12 years and older should get a COVID-19 vaccination to help protect against COVID-19. For more information regarding COVID-19 vaccines for children and teens, please click here.

• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds (sing the Happy Birthday song for help in timing the 20 seconds). If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizers that contain at least 60% alcohol.

• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue, and then dispose of the tissue and clean your hands immediately. If you do not have a tissue, use your sleeve, not your hands, to cover your coughs and sneezes.

• Limit close contact with people who are sick, and avoid sharing food, drinks, or utensils.

• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipes. 

• All students and staff should wear a mask or face covering while in the educational setting.

For additional questions related to COVID-19, please visit the OC Health Care Agency website, which also includes a COVID-19 hotline.