For the protection of all scholars, campus nurses will adhere to the Texas Department of State Health Services COMMUNICABLE DISEASE CHART AND NOTES FOR SCHOOLS AND CHILDCARE CENTERS.

This guidance provides campus nurses with the requirements for sending scholars home and when they may return to school. Parents are requested to keep a scholar at home if they experience signs of a potential illness. Examples include:

• Diarrhea at least 3 times in the last 24 hours with or without medication.

• Fever 100 degrees or higher - a child should be fever free for 24 hours (without taking any fever-reducing medication) prior to returning to school. During the flu season, if the temperature is below 100 but the student is exhibiting flu-like symptoms, they will be sent home at the nurse’s discretion.

• Suspected contagious disease.

• Vomiting (they must remain at home if they have vomited in the last 24 hours).

A sick scholar who is unable to participate in school in a meaningful way should be kept home to rest and recover until symptoms resolve. Keeping a sick scholar home also protects other children, school staff, and visiting community members from contracting an illness that can be spread from person to person. If you take your child to a healthcare provider for an illness, please be sure to request a written letter stating when your child may return to school. However, the COMMUNICABLE DISEASE CHART AND NOTES FOR SCHOOLS AND CHILDCARE CENTERS will provide a more complete list of conditions, signs and symptoms, and when to go to the doctor or return to school. If you have any questions, please contact the school nurse for guidance.