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Van Hise Elementary temporarily closed due to confirmed COVID-19 case connected to child care

Wisconsin State Journal - 10/28/2020

Oct. 28--Madison'sVan Hise Elementary School, which was open in partnership with the Wisconsin Youth Company to provide child care for 15 students, is temporarily closed due to a confirmed cased of COVID-19.

The decision to close the site was made and communicated to parents on Friday, Wisconsin Youth Company executive director Rebecca Carlin said.

Confidentiality rules prevented her from saying whether a student or staff member tested positive, but she expects the program and the building to reopen in two weeks.

The Madison School District worked with child care providers to offer child care to families after the district decided to conduct school entirely online to start the school year.

"The goal was to have people who would typically work with this age group providing child care at all of the programs in each of the elementary schools to give families a resource," Carlin said.

Carlin said that in providing care to 160 children across seven Madison sites this is the first COVID-19 case the agency has seen.

"People need access to safe and affordable child care," she said. "School staff are referring children who really need access, based on family situation, to that kind of care during the day."

Wisconsin Youth Company has provided child care programs in Madison in partnership with the school district for decades, Carlin said. The pandemic ushered in a new eight-hour virtual school support program in which children work in small groups with one or two staff members on school assignments.

Masks and health screenings are required, buildings undergo extra cleaning, and children and staff are expected to practice social distancing. Lunch and a snack are provided and children get outdoor recess, Carlin said.

"I don't think it's unreasonable to expect that we might see some positive cases with the number of children we're working with," Carlin said. Madison School District "nursing staff are doing the appropriate contact tracing and making decisions when people need to quarantine."

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