Canton Public School Shares Details Regarding Pooled Coronavirus Testing

Press release from Canton Public Schools:

February 24, 2021

Dear Canton Families,

"In an effort to further our understanding of the prevalence of COVID-19 within our school community and to prevent the spread of the virus within our schools, the District has been working with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and the Department of Public Health (DPH) over the past several weeks to prepare to begin COVID-19 pooled testing.

The pooled testing strategy involves mixing 10-25 test samples together in a “batch” or “pool” that will be PCR tested together, and results will be received by the District within 48 hours. If a pooled test result is negative, then all individual samples within that pool are presumed negative and may continue to remain in school. If a pooled test result is positive, at least one individual in the pool is positive for COVID-19. Each individual in that pool is then given an Abbott BinaxNOW rapid point-of-care antigen test which will identify the positive sample(s). CPS protocols, which can be reviewed here, will then be followed by any positive individuals.

We plan to begin implementing the pooled testing program at Galvin Middle School the week of March 8. Each participating student and staff member will be tested once per week when their Cohort is in school in-person, and the lower nasal swab tests will be self-administered under the direction of designated staff members. Following the rollout of the program at GMS, we plan to expand the pooled testing initiative to additional grade levels and schools.

In the coming days, we will be sending consent letters to GMS families and staff. Signing the consent form will authorize the District to include the student or staff member in the pooled testing program to collect and test samples each week, as well as conduct follow-up testing as necessary. The student or staff member’s participation in the pooled testing initiative is voluntary and not required by CPS and a signed consent letter is required for participation. Parents/guardians or staff members may opt in or out of the program at any time.

The expenses of the first six weeks of the initiative are funded by the state and each school district that is participating in the program is matched with a third party vendor. The vendor assists with testing logistics and provides us with testing materials, access to certified laboratory space, and technology to receive pooled test results and identify individuals that require follow-up testing. CPS is working with Concentric by Ginkgo as its vendor.

To learn more about how the testing is completed in classrooms, view the video overview provided by Concentric by Ginkgo.

To see frequently asked questions about classroom pooling, click here.

This pooled approach is an efficient and cost-effective way for the District to provide regular COVID-19 testing for students, staff, and faculty, and the information this testing will provide will be valuable as we continue to plan to safely bring students back to school to the greatest extent possible. We appreciate your continued support and cooperation and I encourage you to contact CPS Interim Nurse Leader Lauren Pushard at 781-821-5050 ext. 1113 or pushardl@cantonma.org with any questions regarding the program."

Sincerely,
Dr. Fischer-Mueller
Superintendent

This press release was produced by Canton Public Schools. The views expressed are the author's own.