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NOVEMBER 5, 2020 – Effective Monday, November 9, 2020, all Regina Public Schools students from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12 will be required to wear a non-medical  mask in school and on school buses. This change comes at a time when all schools and the school division are working to focus on limiting health risks to students and staff and to minimize disruptions to student learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Please read the letter to all parents and guardians from Director of Education Greg Enion. It explains the background and the rationale for this decision.

We have also updated a number of documents to reflect this change. This is a great time to review these documents below.

If you have any questions, please direct them to your school principal.

Re-open Plan

Return-to-School Parent Handbook

Return-to-School Safety Plan Poster

November 3, 2020 -- On November 2, 2020, Saskatchewan Health Authority informed Regina Public Schools that a case of COVID-19 was diagnosed in a staff member at Gladys McDonald School. The school division contacted all families with students in the affected classroom and letters have been sent out to all Gladys McDonald school families.  

The school will remain open, however, students from the affected class will be staying home and learning remotely until Friday, November 13.

If there are any additional close contacts at the school, they will be contacted directly by Public Health. A close contact is someone who has been within two metres (six feet) of someone for a cumulative 15 minutes. 

The Saskatchewan Health Authority will contact any school family and staff member who may have been in close contact with the affected individual. If any staff, students or school family members show any symptoms, they should please stay home and contact Healthline 811. Symptoms are described here.

OCTOBER 22, 2020 -- A key component of keeping Regina Public Schools students breathing safely at our schools and buildings is the installation of new air filtration systems. The filter technology is called bipolar ionization. This technology:

• Reduces particles and smoke in the air
• Kills pathogens (bacteria, viruses, molds) including human influenza viruses, coronavirus and SARS
• Helps control allergens and asthma

Following a request for proposal process, work on acquiring these units began in September and Phase One is estimated to be complete by the end of November. This first phase includes installing systems on rooftop units, unit ventilators and furnaces. Phase Two is anticipated to begin in late November once the equipment arrives and will include the installation of large-scale air handling units on school buildings.

Regina Public Schools staff and external contractors, who are following all safety protocols and are focussed on minimizing any disruption to school staff and students, are doing work. This complex work involves more than 800 individual installations. Work is proceeding well with Phase One approximately 25 per cent complete as of October 21, 2020. Regina Public Schools appreciates the understanding and patience of staff and school families as work is done to complete this important component of the Regina Public Schools Return-to-School Safety Plan.

October 22, 2020 -- Provincial and civic elections are around the corner. The provincial election will be held on October 26, 2020. Twenty-six Regina Public schools will be used as polling stations. This day is a school division-wide professional development day and there will be no students in schools. School staff will be at work on those days.

For the safety of staff and voters, we have worked with Elections Saskatchewan to ensure that all voting activities and elections staff follow health and safety protocols, including the use of different entrances and exits for school staff and for voters.

The civic election for City Council and School Boards is on November 9, 2020. The majority of the 13 schools hosting polls will have virtual conferences with parents on that day, meaning students will not be at school, although staff will be working. Regina Public Schools has worked with Elections Regina to ensure that all safety protocols are in place for the safety of staff and students.

Regina Public Schools asks all voters and members of the public to follow the signage and rules that Elections Saskatchewan and Elections Regina will have posted and will be monitoring at all of our buildings. For the safety of everyone in our schools, we also ask all voters and visitors to our schools to wear non-medical or disposal masks.

For more information about the provincial election, please visit www.elections.sk.ca. For the civic election, please visit www.regina.ca/elections.

OCTOBER 20, 2020 -- Winter conditions have now arrived so it's time to take extra precautions to avoid slips, trips and falls.

Please CLICK HERE for some winter safety tips.