ading at School
- Connect Students and Families to Nutritious School Meals
- Help Students and Families Access Safe Transportation to School
COVID-19 and the 2021-2022 School Year: Tracks COVID-19 pandemic data to provide schools, families and communities with current, relevant data to inform efforts to keep everyone safe. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services [HHS] provide real-time data tracking of the COVID-19 pandemic through several resources. The Department of Education [ED] draws school-related data from the CDC COVID Data Tracker, the HHS Protect Public Data Hub and other sources to provide the public with information to support safe and healthy learning in the 2021-2022 school year and beyond.
Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools: Updates (11/05/21) official CDC guidance to reflect authorization of COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5-11. This updated guidance for school administrators outlines strategies for K-12 schools to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and maintain safe operations. It continues to emphasize implementing layered prevention strategies to protect students, teachers, staff, and other members of their households, and to support in-person learning. This guidance is based on current scientific evidence and lessons learned from schools implementing COVID-19 prevention strategies.
ED COVID-19 HANDBOOK - Strategies for Safely Reopening Elementary and Secondary Schools (Volume 1 - 2021): Updates (April 2021) the February 2021 ED handbook to incorporate the latest official federal guidance on safe practices for in-person learning.
ED COVID-19 HANDBOOK - Roadmap to Reopening Safely and Meeting All Students' Needs (Volume 2 - 2021): Provides official federal guidance (April 2021) for creating safe and healthy learning environments, addressing lost instructional time, and supporting educator and staff stability and well-being. The handbook volumes are produced by ED's Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development. See, too, the Return to School Roadmap guide for K-12 schools and communities for the 2021-2022 school year.
Back to School Toolkit: Provides resources for school district leaders, teachers, parent leaders, and school supporters who want to help increase confidence in and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines in their school communities, answer questions, and outline school guidance about COVID-19. This federally produced toolkit includes information from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] and new, tailored materials from the US Department of Health and Human Services [HHS] COVID-19 Public Education Campaign.
Safer Schools and Campuses Best Practices Clearinghouse: Provides resources for communities, schools, educators, and families working together to continue to reopen U.S. schools for in-person learning while supporting the needs of all students, particularly historically underserved students and those who have been impacted greatest by the pandemic. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona introduced this new clearinghouse on 4/30/21, explaining “Our role at the Department is to provide guidance and directions on how to (safely reopen all schools for in-person learning, beginning with children in grades K-8), safely and equitably.”
Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools (01/06/22): Updates CDC guidance for K-12 schools based on CDC’s updates to Quarantine and Isolation Guidance for the general public as the course of the pandemic continues to evolve. Key takeaways from these updates include:
- Students benefit from in-person learning, and safely returning to in-person instruction continues to be a priority.
- Vaccination is the leading public health prevention strategy to end the COVID-19 pandemic. Promoting vaccination can help schools safely return to in-person learning as well as extracurricular activities and sports.
- CDC recommends universal indoor masking by all* students (ages 2 years and older), staff, teachers, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.
- New CDC gu