Health Services

Generally, students who do not feel healthy enough to participate in routine school activities should stay home until feeling well enough to rejoin school activities.

• Fever: Students should stay home if they have a fever of 100.4°F or higher. Students can return to school when fever free for 20 hours without the use of fever reducing medicine.
• Strep Throat: Students can return 12 hours after beginning antibiotics and fever free for 20 hours without the use of fever reducing medicine.
• Vomiting or Diarrhea (without a known reason): Students can return to school 20 hours after the last occurrence.
• Rash (without a known reason): Students should stay home if the rash is causing a change in behavior or if they have a fever of 100.4°F or higher.
• Excessive Cough: Students who have a persistent cough that makes it difficult to participate in school should stay home until they are healthy enough to participate in school.

• The school nurse will call the student's parent/guardian listed in the student's Infinite Campus record. Please update your contact information as needed, including emergency contacts. 
• Students who are sick should be picked up as soon as possible to prevent the spread of illness.

Pick Eye (Conjunctivitis)

• There is no exclusion for pine eye unless the student has a fever of 100.4°F or higher and/or is not healthy enough to participate in school activities.
• Consult a healthcare provider for eye pain, reduced/blurry vision, or recent eye trauma.
• Learn more about Pink Eye from the Minnesota Department of Health

Head Lice (Pediculus Humanus Capitis)

• There are no exclusions from school for head lice. While notifying your student's school is encouraged, it is not required.
• Notifications may be sent home with three of more known cases of head lice in a classroom within one month.
• Head lice is a common occurrence. It is not related to cleanliness and has not been shown to spread at school. 
• Parents/guardians are encouraged to regularly monitor for lice. 
• If live lice are found at school, resources for treatment will be shared with parents/guardians.
• Learn more about Head Lice, including treatment options, from the Minnesota Department of Health

District 196 follows guidelines from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to decide if changes to outdoor activities are needed due to air quality. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that children get 60 or more minutes of physical activity each day. 

To keep students safe while staying active, school principals and building nurses will work together to: 

• Change outdoor plans based on EPA air quality guidance to lower health risks
• Teach students and staff about risks and what health symptoms to watch for
• Identify students who may need to take prescribed medication before going outside
• Find and help any student showing health symptoms right away so they can get first aid