Parents will soon be able to voluntarily report COVID-19 cases to Ottawa's public school board
Parents of students in Ottawa's public school board will be able to voluntarily report positive COVID-19 cases in schools.
The Ottawa Carleton District School Board will launch a voluntary COVID-19 disclosure process for parents, students and staff later this month.
"In response to requests for continued reporting of information on suspected COVID-19 cases at school, the OCDSB is creating a voluntary COVID-19 reporting process," said the OCDSB in a letter to parents on Friday.
"Parents, students and staff will be able to share information about cases through a new Voluntary COVID-19 reporting form."
The Ontario government suspended reporting of COVID-19 cases in classes and schools over the holidays. The provincial guidelines stated principals would only notify the health unit of a potential outbreak when 30 per cent of students and staff are absent.
Starting Monday, all school boards in Ontario will begin reporting school absences, which will track how many students and staff are physically present in a school on a given day.
The OCDSB says a new COVID-19 Disclosure Dashboard will share information on COVID-19 cases in schools voluntarily reported by parents, guardians and students.
"Our goal is to be as transparent as possible with the community. This data is self-reported by parents/guardians and/or staff through voluntary reporting and/or normal absence reporting processes and we cannot guarantee the accuracy of it," the OCDSB said.
"It is meant to be a snapshot of the current COVID-19 situation and absences due to illness in schools and workplaces for the previous school day."
The Ottawa Catholic School Board announced this week that it would notify families of positive cases in schools, should they learn of them.
In a letter to parents and guardians, the board said that if the school becomes aware of a positive COVID-19 test result via a rapid antigen or PCR test, families would be notified.
RAPID ANTIGEN TESTS
Ottawa's public school board has received a shipment of rapid antigen tests and has been distributing them to schools this week.
Two tests will be provided to each elementary student.
"Schools will send test kits and instructions to parents and guardians once they are ready for distribution," said the OCDSB.
"We expect to receive additional tests for secondary students at a later date."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.