Click here for information from the Mayo Clinic website. | Information provided to Vermilion Schools by State Industrial | Kids on Hands PowerPoint Presentation | Kids on Hands Teacher Lesson Plans | Jarod's Law PowerPoint |
As we enter into the cold and flu season, we would like you to know that as a school district, Vermilion has and continues to be proactive in reducing the risk factors involved with the spreading of viruses and infections. As many of you probably already know, through the media outlets, there is a nasty infection attacking students throughout Ohio. The infection is called Methicillin –resistant Staphylococcus aureus or (MRSA). This staph infection can be acquired from anywhere at any time. This infection is not directly linked to schools, health facilities or gyms but can surely be associated with these places or anywhere else that has a large concentration of people. We have created a link to MayoClinic.Com that has all the information you need to become educated on this infection and we would hope you would take the time to open the link to educate yourself on what MRSA is and how we can protect our families from acquiring this infection. We have also created a link to a report prepared by State Industrial, a vendor for the District, outlining the infection as well the chemicals we are using in the District on a daily basis to reduce the risk of a student from acquiring the infection in the District.
Every report that I read sites frequent hand washing and sanitizing as the best way to avoid contracting this infection. The District was proactive in August before any reports of MRSA surfaced in teaming with State Industrial to mount sanitation stations throughout our school buildings. It has become common practice at South Street for our students to not only wash their hands before and after lunch, but to squirt sanitizer on their hands as they enter the cafeteria. Every computer lab has a sanitation station mounted in the room as well as other locations strategically placed throughout the buildings. In addition we have changed our soap product to a foaming soap to encourage hand washing and to conserve product at the same time. State Chemical has also developed a program called “Kids on Hands” which we have also provided a link for your review. It is a 16 slide power point presentation outlining the importance of washing hands as well as instructional tips to wash properly. This presentation will be available to all teachers as a tool to share with their students if they elect to do so. We are also investigating procedures for lost and found items as all medical sources site the importance of not sharing hats, gloves, scarves etc. and preventing students from searching through a box of cloths, that are often dirty and unsterile, to locate the item they lost. More information will follow in the weeks to come as to how we will handle this issue.
I can assure you that as a District we are taking every possible precaution that we can. We have stressed to our custodians, coaches and principals the importance of taking the appropriate measures to prevent an outbreak. We have created educational and training programs to increase awareness and we are now informing all of you of the seriousness of this infection. I ask for your cooperation and understanding as we move forward in educating your children and it is my most sincere desire to do everything we can as a District to keep your children happy, healthy and safe!
In December of 2003 a tragic accident occurred in a Southern Ohio School System that prompted an investigation into the safety of schools in the State of Ohio. A six year old boy was killed in an accident involving a piece of furniture that did not comply with State Code. As a result, the parents of this young boy named Jarod Bennett, made it their life’s mission to do everything they could to prevent another accident that claimed their son, from happening again. Just this month, The Ohio General Assembly convened and in overwhelming fashion, passed into law, a group of guidelines by which schools should be governed to ensure its students safety. This law which has been nearly four years in the making is now known as Jarod’s Law. As a School District, our drive and determination is to pursue safer schools for the children of the Vermilion Local School District, driven by the belief that most accidents are preventable. We have already taken preventative measures in identifying potential dangerous equipment, furniture, chemicals, playground equipment and any other condition that could prove to be dangerous. We have and are actively continuing to eradicate these conditions from our District and will do so until we are satisfied that we indeed provide the safest learning environment in the State of Ohio. We can assure you that there is nothing the district takes more seriously or places more of a priority on than the safety of our students, YOUR CHILDREN. Please take the time to review the basic outline of Jarod’s Law in the Power Point presentation found on this web site. It will give you some insight into conditions that we have and will be focusing on as we go forward. We will be working closely with the County Health Inspector, Fire Inspector and Electrical Inspector to ensure all necessary precautions are being taken. We understand that the only way for us to be completely successful in our endeavor is to have the cooperation of all involved; Administration, Teachers, Aides, Support Staff and indeed YOU!!! Please keep this in mind as you visit our School District whether it is for an event or just picking up and dropping off your children. Please obey all of the District’s policies and procedures while visiting and help us keep YOUR CHILDREN SAFE.
Patrick Higley, Operations Coordinator