Ferndale School District: Asymptomatic Surveillance Testing Information

Press release from Ferndale School District:

March 30, 2021

Ferndale School District is excited to announce a partnership with Seattle Children’s that will allow us to reduce the COVID-19 spread from asymptomatic individuals within our community. This opportunity will be offering onsite COVID-19 testing for secondary students at Horizon Middle School (HMS), Vista Middle School (VMS), and Ferndale High School (FHS). The program includes rapid COVID-19 testing for asymptomatic students through school district personnel who are trained and monitored by Seattle Children’s. These tests are open to any secondary hybrid student with family permission one time per week during school hours. 

• Ferndale High School: Monday (AA)/Thursday (BB)  7:15-8:00 a.m.
• Horizon Middle School: Monday (AA)/Friday (BB) 7:30-8:15 a.m.
• Vista Middle School: Tuesday (AA)/Thursday (BB):  7:30 - 8:15 a.m.

Sites will be using BinaxNOW tests, which provide results in 15 minutes and are administered using a self-administered nasal swab. These antigen tests are highly accurate, detecting 97-98% of infected individuals. This results in a ~50% reduction in the asymptomatic infection burden within the school setting. 

Staff, students, and families of students tested will receive results via text and/or email on the same day. All test results will be shared with the local health department as required for public health reporting and contact tracing, as well as to determine the stay-at-home period for those testing positive. All data will be protected and transferred in a secure manner.

If interested in participating in the program, please fill out the attached permission form and return it to the main office in your school building or testing site. Testing will start the week of April 12, 2021. Before the test, visit http://register.warapidtest.org to register for testing and to be able to receive testing notifications. This website will generate a confidential QR code. Save this QR Code because it will be used each time a test is performed. When it’s time to be tested, bring the QR code (printed or saved on a mobile device) to the testing site. If printed, the school can keep the code with the student’s name for future testing. 

Please direct questions about the testing program to your school.

Sincerely,

Secondary Principals
Jeremy Vincent (FHS), Heather Leighton (VMS), and David Rodriquez (HMS)

This press release was produced by Ferndale School District. The views expressed here are the author’s own.