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Adapt, Advance, Achieve: Connecticut’s Plan to Learn and Grow Together
School Liaison, Communications Plans, and Data Collection
Having a central contact and effective communications plan will be important for schools to
perform effective outreach to stakeholders, families, staff, advocates, and other community
partners. Schools should plan active communication before and during reopening, and cover a
variety of topics, including but not limited to, COVID-19 related cleaning and hygiene protocols,
prevention action items, and distribution of information if there is a need to cancel classes in whole
or in part. This should include feedback from the school community, particularly as you begin
implementation of different policies and protocols. A variety of communication resources related to
COVID-19 are available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website.
Requirements
School Liaison:
• Designate an employee to serve as a COVID-19 Health and Safety Compliance
Liaison. This designated person will be responsible for engaging with students,
parents, faculty, staff, and administrators to answer questions or concerns about
health and safety requirements regarding COVID-19 concerns (e.g., school nurse).
All school staff and families should know and have the contact information for
the designee. This role can be assigned to an administrator or someone with the
authority to address compliance issues.
Communications Plan:
• Put systems in place to communicate the most up to date policies and protocols
related to the considerations herein, for staff, students, and families. Schools should
leverage multiple communication methods (mail, e-mail, phone calls, text messaging,
social media, LEA and school websites). Ensure all policies and protocols are clearly
marked with version and date, as they may change over time. Consider a COVID-19
landing page in which communication and guidance can be updated regularly.
• Make communications plans available in relevant languages of families in the
community, as well as accessible to those with visual and/or hearing impairments.
• Ensure the development of plans for ongoing two-way communication with the
school community (staff, families, and students) about any new policies and/or
protocols prior to reopening, any time there is a significant policy change, and upon
re-entry if a school closes temporarily during the year. This should include feedback
and consultation regarding the implementation of those policies.
• Develop expectations around frequency of communication, and ensure detailed
updates are provided any time critical information regarding policies, protocols, or
health data changes.
• Put in place a plan for how the community will be notified of any changed policies,
need to cancel classes, or other changes or restrictions. See also Cancellation of
Classes, Remote Learning, and Reopening Plan, page 24.
• Make plans easily accessible, including but not limited to being visible on the main
landing page of the LEA and school websites.
• Ensure these baseline requirements related to communication are the overarching
principles applied to other communication plans referenced in this document.
Data Collection:
• Prioritize gathering information from families prior to reopening. Collect information
from families to properly plan for resuming classes in the fall. For example, assess
whether certain families will choose not to participate and instead continue with
remote learning, and, if so, how that may affect facilities and operations planning.