New Facilities Checklist Website Details School Readiness for Student Return

February 22nd, 2021

The Howard County Public School System is carefully preparing all school buildings for the upcoming transition to hybrid in-person and concurrent virtual learning. Every school building will undergo a walk-through inspection, based on an extensive School Readiness Checklist, to ensure that all preparations are complete before students begin to return on Monday, March 1, 2021.

A new HCPSS resource, facilities-checklist.hcpss.org, enables community and staff members to view the results of each school’s readiness inspection. The site is updated with the results of each School Readiness Checklist as it is completed for each school building.

Each School Readiness Checklist includes 25 individual inspection items that cover:

• PPE for students and staff (masks, face shields, gloves etc., as applicable)
• Cleaning (daily cleaning procedures and supplies, and hand sanitizer stations and supplies)
• HVAC enhancements
• Health room and isolation room supplies and procedures
• Socially-distanced space arrangements (classrooms, eating areas and staff spaces)
• Signage for social distancing and health/safety practices (bathrooms, entrances, hallways, classrooms, cafeterias)
• Physical barriers in place (plexiglas, tape etc., where applicable)

The new Facilities Checklist website offers an additional resource to support parents/guardians and staff in understanding the many measures HCPSS has put in place to help assure student and staff well-being in school system buildings. Additional information about facility preparation is provided in the Bridge to Normalized Instruction Hybrid Instructional Model, and in answers to frequently asked questions on HVAC system preparations, social distancing measures, and facilities modifications.