Dear Lancaster County CTC Students and Parents/Guardians,
Over the last few weeks, Lancaster County and the nation have seen a significant rise in Covid-19 cases.
Unfortunately, we have learned that some positive cases in the LCCTC community originated as a result of students and families hosting or attending large social gatherings. Such gatherings are contrary to the recommendations we have repeatedly made to students and parents, which are based on Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and PA Department of Health (DOH) guidelines.
We are very concerned about the impact that large gatherings may have during the Thanksgiving Holiday break. We encourage the LCCTC community to practice appropriate behaviors and follow recommendations from the CDC and the PA Department of Health and avoid social gatherings beyond your immediate household. Please limit gatherings to immediate family members, wear masks outside of your home, practice social distancing, and wash your hands often.
We cannot stress enough that the behavior of students and families outside of our schools has a direct impact on our ability to provide full-time, in-person career and technical training and learning opportunities for our students. Starting November 20, the state is requiring anyone visiting other states during the holidays to have a negative Covid-19 test result before returning to PA OR to quarantine for 14 days. School absences incurred from quarantine due to travel could negatively affect students’ participation in clinical, cooperative education, and internships. The safest course of action would be to remain at home as the PA Department of Health has recently announced travel bans for individuals leaving and entering the state.
It has been a long year since March but, with recent vaccine developments, there is the glimmer of hope for a return to normal in the future. Until we get there, we must all do everything we can now to prevent the spread of the virus. Please, for your sake and for your loved ones, limit your celebrations this year in order to have many celebrations to come.
For additional information about COVID-19, please visit the Pennsylvania Department of Health website or the LCCTC Covid-19 website page.
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