Considering travel outside of Vermont or hosting out-of-state guests? If so, the Harwood Unified Union School District (HUUSD) has issued guidelines for local families to follow.
In its weekly communication with the community, HUUSD asked all students, staff and their families to adhere to Vermont guidelines. Those who are planning to travel outside of the state for Thanksgiving or Christmas are asked to first check the color-coded Vermont travel map that indicates COVID-19 rates in surrounding states. Those planning to visit counties that are red or yellow in color (indicating COVID rates greater than 400 cases per million people) will have to quarantine upon returning to Vermont.
“Quarantine means refraining from activities outside of the home, like grocery shopping or getting together with friends or family. People in quarantine should separate themselves from others and check themselves for symptoms. People in quarantine may not go to work outside of the home and may not attend school,” the HUUSD missive notes.
Community members are reminded that traveling by airplane, regardless of the number of COVID cases were 1 million people, is considered high risk and has the same quarantine requirements as traveling to a red county. People in quarantine must stay home for 14 days or seven days followed by a negative COVID test.
If the color of a county changes while a visit is still underway, people are advised to use the color of the county on the day they left Vermont.
“Are you hosting friends/family from out-of-state and unsure as to whether or not your household (not your guests) should be quarantining as well? While your guests may need to quarantine based on what color the county is that they’re traveling from, you and your family who reside within the household do not need to quarantine as well. Quarantining guidelines are only applicable to the traveler and, therefore, students can still come to school when someone in the house has traveled from any other area,” the newsletter explained.
This also applies to family members who may have traveled (including those who have returned from college for a holiday or scheduled break). The family member who traveled should follow quarantine guidelines and other members of the family should stay 6 feet apart, wear masks in common areas (inside the house), wash hands frequently and clean frequently used surfaces.
