School Guidance 2021-2022

Pitkin County Public Health has worked with the schools to help child care facilities and K-12 schools formulate and implement plans for safe, successful, and in-person instruction in the 2021-2022 school year. The following guidance was developed based on the Public Health Order, and apply to vaccinated and unvaccinated students and staff. 

Mask Requirements

Effective August 18, 2021, masks are required for all individuals two years of age and older regardless of vaccination status in the following situations:

• While indoors in any preschool through grade 12 school building anywhere in Pitkin County; this includes classrooms, hallways and common areas
• While indoors at any childcare center or childcare facility, regardless of licensing status.
• While indoors and participating in a youth camp, youth extracurricular activity, youth gym activities, and most youth sport settings (see our Face Covering Guidance for Sports for more information). This requirement applies to all participants, attendees, spectators, staff, volunteers, and coaches.
• Masks are not required while students and staff are interacting outdoors. 

Pitkin County Public Health is dedicated to maintaining the health and well being of all children and staff members at Pitkin County schools and child care facilities while also ensuring schools and child care facilities can operate safely. Learn more about the impact of wearing masks on children’s mental health in this Colorado Department of Public Health document.

View the mask requirements page for general mask guidance.

Testing & Isolation Guidance

Exposure Mitigation Guidance

Quarantine Protocol

Please see our Quarantine/Isolation page to see the current Pitkin County Quarantine Protocol.

When To Stay Home Or Go Home

A student or staff member who has been exposed to someone with COVID-19 or has any of the following symptoms should stay home.

Major Symptoms:

• Fever, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, loss of taste, loss of smell, diarrhea, vomiting, lesions on extremities, eye redness/discharge

Minor Symptoms:

• Headache, earache, muscle aches, stomach pain, runny nose 

Anyone with at least one of the above major or minor symptoms should stay home and seek testing.

Please see When to Get a COVID-19 Test below to determine when someone with symptoms of COVID-19 should be tested AND call your school to inform them of the reason for your absence.

If at least one of the above symptoms have developed within 14 days of being around someone diagnosed with COVID-19, please contact Pitkin County Public Health immediately at diseaseprevention@pitkincounty.com.

When To Get A COVID-19 Test

A student or staff member should be tested for COVID-19 under the following circumstances

Please visit the Get Tested page to find a testing site in the Roaring Fork Valley.

You must isolate at home following your COVID-19 Test. 

Your family should also stay home until the result is available. 

People with COVID-19 symptoms must continue to isolate even with a negative COVID-19 test result.

*Testing too early after exposure can result in a false negative result. Testing should occur in the window of 7 days after the first date that a person was exposed to someone with COVID-19
**Testing too early after symptoms develop can result in a false negative result. Testing should occur after 2 days have passed since the first symptom developed.