February 4, 2021: Please avoid gatherings for Super Bowl and travel for February Break

Dear Parents and Guardians:

The Super Bowl is Sunday! GFSD and Warren County Health Services ask you to avoid indoor gatherings with people from outside of your household. There is concern that Super Bowl parties could cause another spike in COVID cases. Our community metrics have been improving, and we do not want to reverse this trend. If you decide to gather anyways, please follow these guidelines from WCPH, including:

  • Sit only with members of your household when eating or drinking
  • Do not serve food buffet style, and do not share serving utensils
  • Offer paper towels for handwashing in the bathroom: remove shared hand towels

Similarly, February break week begins on Saturday the 13th, continuing through Sunday the 21st. The CDC highly discourages travel at this time, as you and your travel companions (including children) may feel well and not have any symptoms — but you can still spread COVID-19 to family, friends, and community during and after travel.

If you decide to travel anyways, please review the NYSDOH quarantine requirements for any traveler to New York State from a noncontiguous state. For travelers who were out-of-state for more than 24 hours, the process for travelers to test-out of the mandatory 10-day quarantine are:

  • Every family member must obtain a COVID test in the state you’re visiting within three days of departure back to New York.
  • Once home in New York, all must quarantine for three days.
  • On day 4 of your quarantine, your family must obtain another COVID test. If both tests come back negative, you may exit quarantine early upon receipt of the second negative diagnostic test. Please provide copies of both negative test results to your child’s school nurse before they return to school.
  • If any member of your family does not have both the out-of-state COVID test and the in-state COVID test, he/she will be required to quarantine at home for 10 days upon returning.

Please consider your options very carefully before deciding on how to spend your February break. We remain very grateful for your diligence in keeping your family and our school community healthy and secure.

COVID-19 Alert: Cases are extremely High. Avoid Travel