May 24 COVID-19 confirmed cases

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The City School District of Albany was notified Monday of two new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the district. Neither case is associated with the district’s ongoing voluntary COVID-19 testing.

The first case involves Edmund J. O’Neal Middle School of Excellence. The individual is associated with an eighth-grade classroom, was last in the building on May 21 and is in quarantine. The Albany County Health Department has identified 11 additional contacts with the case.

The second case involves Giffen Memorial Elementary School. The individual is engaged in distance learning only and is quarantined at home. The health department has identified no additional contacts.

Health and safety procedures at all district buildings continue to include cleaning and sanitizing nightly. We will continue with these procedures, and also will continue to follow all required COVID-19 precautions (pre-arrival symptom screening and temperature screening for students and staff, wearing masks, hand hygiene, social distancing of 6 feet or more, and other precautions).

We also would like to remind everyone of steps you can take to help be safe:

  1. Maintain a social distance of at least 6 feet at all times from those you don’t live with.
  2. Always wear a mask that covers both the mouth and nose when you are out of your home.
  3. Wash hands with soap and water frequently when out of your home. If you cannot use soap and water, use alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
  4. Don’t touch the eyes, nose or mouth unless your hands are clean.
  5. Complete the Student COVID-19 Screener each day before your child leaves for school, available daily via the email address on file for parents and guardians. More information is available from the Students/Families dropdown menu above.
  6. DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD TO SCHOOL WHEN THEY ARE SICK OR HAVE SYMPTOMS:
  • Signs of COVID-19 are: fever, fatigue/tiredness, muscle/body aches or pains, congestion, cough, runny nose, shortness of breath/difficulty breathing, nausea/vomiting or diarrhea, headache, loss of taste or smell, rash, feeling sick or unwell in any way.
  • You can get a COVID-19 test by calling the New York State Department of Health COVID-19 Hotline at (888) 364-3065, or Whitney M. Young Jr. Health Center at (518) 407-0172 or (518) 465-4771.