Beginning October 12, 2021, Monroe School District will begin offering optional COVID-19 testing for free, Monday - Friday at the district administration office (14692 179th Ave SE, Monroe, WA 98272) from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for students and their families. Testing will be administered outdoors in a drive through format in the parking lot.

To expedite the testing process, online registration prior to arrival is highly encouraged: https://curative.com/sites/33140/walkup. The online registration form will have a space for you to input insurance information but there will be no charge to you and there are no copay requirements. The testing is absolutely free. A parent or guardian must accompany all students under age 18 and consent forms must be filled out onsite. To save time, families may print and fill out the Student Consent Form prior to arriving for testing. Please remember to wear a mask when arriving for your test session.

For students who are required to be out of school due to symptoms consistent with COVID-19, a negative test result will allow students to return to school when they are fever free for 24 hours without medication and when symptoms have improved.

Additionally, Monroe School District now has a Memorandum of Agreement with the Snohomish Health District for the "Test to Stay" Program. This will allow students who have been identified as a close contact to a COVID-19 positive individual at school* to shorten their quarantine period to 7 days, provided certain criteria (below) are met.

*Unfortunately, students exposed outside of school (i.e. household exposure, private sports league exposure, etc.) are not eligible to participate in this program and need to quarantine for the full 14 days, as directed by the Snohomish Health District.

Close contacts exposed at school must meet the following criteria in order to participate in the Test to Stay Program and return to school after 7 days:

• Be free of all symptoms of COVID-19;
• Receive at least two negative COVID-19 tests (PCR or NAAT tests):
  • One test conducted as soon as possible following recognition of the exposure (i.e. the same or next school day), and
  • One test collected 5-7 days after the last known exposure.
  • If testing is not conducted according to this schedule, individuals must follow the standard quarantine guidance and remain in quarantine for a minimum of 10 days from the last known exposure.
• Testing can be performed at the Monroe School District Administration Office. Tests conducted at home by the parent, guardian, or individual will not be accepted. Documentation of a negative PCR or NAAT COVID-19 test from another testing site will also be accepted if completed during the same time frame and submitted to the school.
• While students who meet the above criteria may be permitted to return to school after 7 days from their last know exposure, they still must quarantine from activities outside of school, such as extracurricular activities, after-school activities or social gatherings until their quarantine period (10 days) is complete, they remain symptom-free, and they have tested negative at least 5-7 days after last exposure.

We are fortunate to have received additional grant funding through the Return to Learn Program to increase the staffing necessary to offer this daily testing option for our students and families. This increased funding and Memorandum of Agreement with the Snohomish Health District allow Monroe School District to provide this opportunity for our school community. If you have questions regarding this testing opportunity, please contact the Monroe School District office at 360-804-2500.