Upon receiving additional information and guidance from our local health department, effective Thursday, Jan. 13, Peoria Public Schools will transition to adopting 5-day isolation and quarantine recommendations. These recommendations will apply to most staff and students in Peoria Public Schools.

COVID Positive

• Students and staff will be allowed to return to their buildings after a 5-day isolation as long the following criteria are met for a full 10 days:
  • MUST remain masked at all times throughout the day
  • MUST remain 6 foot socially distanced during lunch periods or when your mask must be removed, i.e. eating lunch
  • Your symptoms have improved
  • You are fever free for 24 hours and no vomiting or diarrhea for 24 hours
• Five full days must elapse following the positive test date and/or symptoms exposure before a return may be made.

For example, if someone tested positive on Jan. 1, that individual would be able to return on Jan. 7. If someone began exhibiting symptoms on Jan. 2 and were tested on Jan. 3, that individual could return to school on Jan. 8 if symptoms have improved.

• Those staff or students who tested positive starting Jan. 8 will fall under the newly adopted 5-day isolation and quarantine guidance. Those individuals will be able to return after the completion of a 5-day isolation. For those who tested positive on Jan. 7 or prior, you will continue the 10-day protocol and be able to return on Jan. 18 following the MLK Jr. Day weekend.
• Students participating in athletics or extracurricular activities may return to school following five days of isolation or quarantine. However, 10 full days must elapse before the student can resume athletics or extracurricular activities.
• Pre-K settings (Valeska Hinton main campus and expansion campus) remain a 10-day isolation for student positive cases.

Close Contact Exposure

• As part of IDPH’s adoption of the new 5-day quarantine recommendations, staff members who are eligible for a COVID-19 booster shot must have received their COVID-19 booster shot in order to avoid a quarantine following a close contact exposure*. Otherwise, if you are unvaccinated, partially vaccinated or only received the initial dose(s) of the COVID-19 vaccine and are eligible for a COVID-19 booster shot, a 5-day quarantine will be required if an individual is identified as a close contact exposure.
• Household exposures will require a full 10 day isolation from the first day of exposure
• Pre-K settings (Valeska Hinton main campus and expansion campus) remain a 14-day quarantine for student close contact exposures.
• Students ages 5-17 who have completed the primary series of COVID-19 vaccines will NOT be required to quarantine if they are identified as a close contact exposure.

*Students and staff 18 and older are eligible for booster doses after 5 months for Pfizer, 6 months for Moderna, or 2 months for Johnson & Johnson.

Returning to the Building

• Effective Jan. 13 – Peoria Public Schools will not require a release of isolation/quarantine letter from the Health Department in order for a staff member or student to return to school. The district will oversee this process moving forward. This decision was made in collaboration with the Peoria County Health Department’s public health administrator, Monica Hendrickson.

At the July 26th Board of Education meeting, Peoria Public Schools announced that the district will be adopting a universal masking protocol to start the school year. Peoria Public Schools has worked closely with the Peoria City/County Health Department, throughout the pandemic and continued to collaborate in preparation for the upcoming school year.

PPS believes that masking and physical distancing in our schools are key prevention strategies, particularly as COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are on the rise locally. COVID-19 testing with our partners at Reditus Labs, contact tracing after positive cases and thorough cleaning procedures will also remain a stalwart part of our COVID-19 mitigation efforts.