COVID-19 Info

Yes, and school start times will remain the same for all campuses. Of course, this is subject to change as the district is following guidance and direction from federal, state and local agencies. 

For specific information about bell times/class schedules for your student’s school, please contact the campus directly.

Please contact your campus principal directly via our Contact Page or by calling the number(s) listed here:
(903) 803-5000 Montessori Academy
(903) 803-5600 Bramlette Elementary
(903) 803-5100 Hudson PEP Elementary
(903) 803-5400 Everhart Elementary
(903) 803-5300 Johnston-McQueen Elementary
(903) 803-5500 Ned E. Williams Elementary
(903) 803-5200 South Ward Elementary
(903) 803-5700 Ware Elementary
(903) 466-2510 Forest Park Middle
(903) 446-2710 Foster Middle
(903) 446-2610 Judson Middle
(903) 663-1301 Longview High
(903) 381-3921 Early Grad High 

The school nurse will provide a clinical assessment to determine if a student or staff member needs to be sent home. Students who are ill will be separated from their peers in an isolation room and should be picked up within one hour from the time the campus contacts the student’s parent or guardian. Other students will be immediately removed from the classroom and taken to an alternate location on campus so that the classroom can be disinfected.

Staff members displaying COVID-19 symptoms will follow district protocols; including isolation from students and other staff members. For more staff questions about COVID-19 please contact Mae Johnson Lewis via email or call 903-381-2292. 

Once the district collects and confirms information about a positive COVID-19 case, parents and staff will receive an email, text message, and/or phone call. We will send two separate communications: one to the group directly exposed and another one to the rest of the campus. 

For more information please see the TEA's latest Public Health Guidance here. 

Once the district collects and confirms information about a positive COVID-19 case, parents and staff will receive an email, text message, and/or phone call. We will send two separate communications: one to the group directly exposed and another one to the rest of the campus. 

For more staff questions about COVID-19 please contact Mae Johnson Lewis via email or call 903-381-2292. 

If a student shows back up to school after being sent home for having symptoms, the parents will be called and the student will be isolated in the nurse's clinic to ensure a health and safe classroom environment.

For more information please see the TEA's latest Public Health Guidance here. 

Students who visit the nurse's clinic to take necessary medications will stop at the door and wait for the nurse to meet them with the medication. You can also see the TEA's latest Public Health Guidance here. 

Parents will need to contact the school nurse. If a child is diagnosed with COVID-19, the CDC requires a 14-day quarantine. Students will need to check back with a school nurse to see what they need to bring to show it is safe to return. 

Hand-washing will be a priority and hand sanitizer will be provided at all campuses. For specific questions about your student's campus, please contact your principal directly. 

For more information please see the TEA's latest Public Health Guidance here. 

Confirmed cases come from your physician or a COVID-19 testing center.

All employees should be instructed to notify the district's Human Resource COVID-19 task manager Mae Johnson Lewis via email or call 903-381-2292 if they have been exposed to or have been diagnosed with COVID-19. Supervisors also should be instructed to notify HR and forward any documentation received to HR. Coordinating the effort through the HR office can ensure messaging is consistent and handled in a professional manner.

Longview ISD is closely monitoring COVID-19 and is in contact with all the relevant federal, state, and local agencies to follow all recommended protocols and procedures. Trained staff routinely are monitoring individuals who exhibit fever, cough, and shortness of breath and are following appropriate assessment and monitoring protocols for students and staff who report feeling ill.

The district is encouraging all students and staff to follow all preventative health measures, which include frequent hand washing, covering coughs, and staying home when sick. LISD is continuing to follow its standard procedure for routine cleaning and disinfection of schools, with special emphasis placed on disinfection of door handles and other frequently touched areas, as suggested by local and state health officials and the Texas Education Agency.

Custodial teams also are making sure all schools and buildings are properly stocked with needed supplies, including soap and paper towels. The district already uses antimicrobial floor wax. Additionally, all LISD maintenance and operations departments are working to ensure all other cleaning agents used in district schools, facilities, and vehicles contain the suggested concentration of disinfectant as outlined by the American Chemistry Council Center for Biocide Chemistries.

Transportation Services also is preparing to enhance daily bus-cleaning efforts with the addition of interior sanitization, a practice often implemented by the department during cold and flu season. Plans call for buses to be sanitized with disinfecting wipes after routes are completed each day and again on the weekend, as a precautionary measure.

The district is continuing to monitor the situation to ensure all precautionary measures are in alignment with current guidance from local, state, and national health officials and in the best interest of students and staff.

Visitors will not be allowed on campus unless it is an essential need such as ARD, 504, Student Success meetings, or arranged with the campus principal.

Diagnostic Clinic of Longview, Christus Good Shepard Urgent Care Clinics, Hospitality ER, EXCEL ER, Wellness Pointe, Health Care Express.

Most of these require insurance, or will probably take a cash payment. With the exception of Wellness Pointe, they are the only ones, who will take insurance, and will help people who have no income. Some facilities may not test unless you have signs and symptoms of COVID-19.

To be eligible for leave, an employee must be subject to a quarantine or isolation order, advised by a health care provider to self-quarantine, or experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and seeking a medical diagnosis. 

For more staff questions about COVID-19 please contact Mae Johnson Lewis via email or call 903-381-2292.

Wearing a face mask for safety precautions may be required, but an exemption may be necessary as an accommodation for an employee unable to comply. 

While continuing to work remotely is an accommodation available to an employee with a high-risk health factor, it is not the only option. When engaging in the interactive process an employer may consider the role served by the employee, location of work performed, and amount of interaction with the public to determine an appropriate accommodation. 

Work performed by employees varies from employer to employer and from job to job within the same employer. It is important for an employer to communicate their expectations based on their needs. Clearer expectations may help employers manage leave issues that arise during this challenging time.

For more staff questions about COVID-19 please contact Mae Johnson Lewis via email or call 903-381-2292.

Employers can expect to see an uptick of employee requests to make mid-year election changes to their dependent care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA). Typically, these requests will be to decrease or stop dependent care contributions because a childcare facility has closed.

An employee is entitled to a total of 12 weeks of family and medical leave (FML) in the 12 months designated by the employer (e.g., FML year). This includes standard FML and EFML. If an employee uses 12 weeks of FML for their own serious health condition, to care for a family member with a serious health condition, or to care for a child following birth, adoption, or foster care placement, they do not have any leave remaining for EFML during the designated FML year.

When a new FML year begins (e.g., July 1 or the start of the school year), the employee would be eligible to take 12 weeks of leave for a qualifying reason, including EFML. Remember, even if your FML year restarts with the new school year, an employee is limited to a total of 12 weeks of EMFL from April 1, 2020 to December 31, 2020.

Choosing to withdraw a child when schools physically reopen and begin full-time homeschooling is not a qualifying reason for EFML. FFCRA leave only applies if the parent must care for his or her child whose school or place of care is closed (or childcare provider is unavailable) due to a COVID-19 related reason.

The May 18, 2020, Executive Order No. GA-23 establishes the limits for students, teachers, and staff presence on school campuses:

"Public education teachers and staff are encouraged to continue to work remotely from home if possible, but may return to schools to conduct remote video instruction, to perform administrative duties, and, beginning June 1 , 2020, to provide in-person classroom instructional activities and learning options as permitted and offered by school districts, under the minimum standard health protocols found in guidance issued by the TEA.”

Here’s some additional information about staffing related concerns during COVID-19:
https://www.tasb.org/services/hr-services/hrx/other-hr/covid-19-frequently-asked-questions.aspx

https://www.tasb.org/services/hr-services/hrx/other-hr/covid-19-frequently-asked- questions%E2%80%94part-2.aspx

https://www.tasb.org/services/hr-services/hrx/hr-laws/covid-19-frequently-asked-questions-part-3.aspx

Checklist for Employee Diagnosis of or Exposure to COVID 19: 
https://www.tasb.org/services/hr-services/mytasb/hr-library/documents/ep_covid19_checklist.docx

Addressing COVID-19 Exposure:
https://www.tasb.org/services/hr-services/hrx/hr-trends/addressing-covid-19-exposure.aspx