Parent information for the 2021-2022 School Year and

information related to the Novel Coronavirus, COVID-19

To keep families informed and up-to-date on the latest information regarding the 2021-22 School Year and information regarding the coronavirus, COVID-19, the district has created this website.

Masking Mitigation by Building 

 Based on the Masking Mitigation Tool and guidance from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) and the Pulaski County Health Department, the following precautions are in place as of now:

In the chart above, hybrid means 40% or more of the class is quarantined. Students receive virtual instruction at school and at home, based on quarantine status. 

-  Even though some buildings are in green, we STRONGLY encourage all individuals to WEAR MASKS, regardless of their vaccination status.

-  Masked individuals reduce their likelihood of being quarantined.

-  Masks will be required on all school buses at all times.

-  Students should always have a mask readily available at school and will be required to wear them during times when large groups of people are being brought together, such as assemblies, lunch (until the student is seated), arrival and dismissal times, etc. 

-  The district will continue to closely monitor student and staff COVID-19 cases daily and the status could change at any time.

-  If it is your preference for your child to wear a mask at school, please feel free to notify your child’s teacher of your preference.

-  The district will notify families via email and the website of any changes to masking expectations.

Please note that the district takes a layered approach to COVID-19 prevention, which includes masking, social distancing, improved ventilation (more information about ventilation upgrades will be forthcoming), handwashing, cleaning, contact tracing, education, and diagnostic and screening testing.

The district is following the “Missouri School Reopening & Operations Guidance,” which was issued on Aug. 17, 2021, from the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) and the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, which states, “Policies regarding masks should be made at the discretion of the local boards of education, after consideration of community transmission and positivity rates within a community, and should be considered for adjustment as public health circumstances dictate. Such policies should be developed with consultation of state and/or local health authorities, as statutory and regulatory authority to mitigate risk of transmission, up to and including school closures, remains within the jurisdiction of the LPHA (local public health agency).”

More details regarding the Masking Mitigation by Building chart above:

1. Masks will be required for students and staff at schools on Fort Leonard Wood (Partridge Elementary, Thayer Elementary, Wood Elementary, Williams Early Childhood and Pick Educational and Volunteer Facility) due to Fort Leonard Wood’s current guidelines. 

o   From the Masking Mitigation Tool: “Schools on FLW will follow the installation’s general guidelines when the precautions set forth by the installation are greater than what is currently in place by district.” 

2. Masks are optional for students attending schools in Waynesville and St. Robert (East Elementary, Freedom Elementary, Waynesville Sixth Grade Center, Waynesville Middle School, Waynesville High School and Waynesville Career Center); however, masks are strongly encouraged.

o   Per the Masking Mitigation Tool, the district and state levels are in green. Fewer than 1% of our students and staff have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and Pulaski County is in “typical” status*; therefore, the data indicates that off-post schools will begin with masks being optional for students and staff; however, we STRONGLY encourage all individuals to WEAR MASKS, regardless of their vaccination status.

• *According the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, Pulaski County is in typical status, which indicates that there are fewer than 521 positive COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents. 

3. The district continues to follow its Board Policy EBB, which requires COVID-19 mitigation measures to be based on guidance from DHSS and the Pulaski County Health Department.

NOTE regarding cumulative totals in the COVID-19 Dashboard at the top of this page:

Cumulative totals do not include active cases from above the solid black line on the chart. Once an individual case ceases to be included in the active totals, then the individual moves into the cumulative totals. This way an individual is only counted once – as either active or in the cumulative totals. The dashboard is updated on Tuesdays.