Amid the COVID-19 crisis, Asheville Farmstead has taken into consideration the state's phased re-opening schedule, active caseload, and what other schools are doing in regards to procedures and safety guidelines. The staff will be doing a lot of work this school year to keep everyone safe.  Not only will we make physical changes to allow for more social distancing, but we are also increasing some key supplies for everyone’s safety.  Over the summer, we were able to purchase & begin using the following items:

  • Additional picnic tables
  • Hand sanitizer, from a local Asheville distillery
  • Disinfecting spray
  • Soap
  • Gloves
  • Masks
  • Additional signage for parking and parents

​We were able to raise funds for these supplies by our online fundraiser. Thank you to everyone who contributed and helped us make Camp Farmstead and Asheville Farmstead School safe for all students and staff members. 

"I am really impressed with how intentionally you all are looking at your protocol for reopening. This makes me feel very safe in a very unsafe time."

- Proud Parent

Updated COVID 19 Proceedures:

Now more than ever, it is going to take our village looking out for one another to create a successful and safe school for all.  As COVID-19 continues to play a factor in our operations, we are moving our policies and procedures away from being dependent on an individual’s vaccination status to being based on the community transmission rates released by the CDC.  

 


During All Stages:

  • Any student who is on campus and shows signs and symptoms of a cold will be asked to wear a mask for the remainder of the day.  Should a family want to opt-out of their child wearing a mask, they will be notified and required to come to pick up their student within 45 minutes of the initial call from the Farmstead.  
  • Anyone who registers a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit will be asked to wear a mask, be socially distanced, and be sent home. Parents will be required to pick up within 45 minutes of the initial call.
  • Families are required to stay in the parking area during pick-up and drop-off.
  • Everyone coming to campus washes hands with soap and water before coming up to the schoolyard.
  • Everyone is to have a mask in their cubby and backpack daily at all times. In the unlikely event that students will need to be inside the building due to safety concerns like lightning, everyone will be required to wear a mask.
  • Sanitize or clean hands after all coughs in hands and fingers in faces (nose picking, thumb sucking).
  • Sanitize hands before going into the schoolhouse.

******masks need to have 3 layers of fabric or be surgical grade. No buffs, bandanas, or valved masks are allowed.*******


August 1st, 2022 Update:

  • Staff are required to maintain full vaccination status for COVID
  • Masking is now a choice for everyone onsite as of August 1st.
  • The most important aspect for us at the Farmstead is that we maintain a mask positive culture for both staff and students and realize the tool that they are (keeping germs to ourselves), and continue to encourage staff, families, and students to use them to help protect our community if we are not 100% and want to attend programming.
  • If a staff or student has been directly exposed to a positive COVID case, they need to stay off campus for at least three days before taking a COVID test (PCR or Antigen) if negative, they can return to campus.
  • If a staff or student tests positive for COVID, they will need to be symptom-free and have two negative antigen tests that are taken 24 hours apart to return to campus.

 

As always, Covid is a fluid moving target, and we reserve the right to reassess and update our policies according to new information should it come to light. Feel free to let me know if you have any additional questions.


Mask Policies:

  • Each family has the option to have their student/s masked during our programing or not.
  • If a student starts showing signs of being sick at school they will either need to put a mask on, or will be kept socially distant until a family member can pick them up.
  • If a student registers a fever they will need to be picked up within 45 minutes of notification.
  • There is zero tolerance for students, staff or families to negatively talk about someone who chooses to wear a mask regardless of the reason.
  • All students must have a mask in their indoor cubby as well as their backpack, that meets our mask standards of no valves and three layers.

Exposures and Closures

  • Should the Farmstead become aware of possible exposure, we will start testing the potentially exposed staff and they will remain off-site until negative test results are submitted.  This will likely mean that Farmstead will be closed until those test results come back if it is a large portion of our teaching staff as we would not be able to cover our teacher-to-student ratio. 
  • If a staff or student has been directly exposed to a positive COVID case, they need to stay off campus for at least three days before taking a COVID test (PCR or Antigen) if negative, they can return to campus and need to mask for five additional days on campus and test again (PCR or Antigen).
  • If a staff, family, or student is sick enough with signs and symptoms for COVID so much that they want to get tested, they will be required to remain off campus while waiting for test results from our community. If all tests come back negative, potentially-exposed students will be welcome to return to the Farmstead the school day following the arrival of the last negative test result. 
  • Families who are exposed or potentially exposed to COVID or notice signs and symptoms of any of the variants of COVID-19 are required to share any and all relevant information with Asheville Farmstead School’s Executive Director, in an effort to protect our community. Students and families who share information about exposures and illness will remain anonymous in communications with our broader community.
  • All testing results will be communicated as swiftly and transparently as the situation permits to those who are in programming at that time.
  • If the local, state, or federal government states that we need to close for a lockdown, we will follow their guidance.
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