Is Colorado entering a second wave of COVID-19? With COVID cases spiking since the beginning of Fall, there are new guidelines that will help students and staff of Arapahoe Community College(ACC) to stay safe. The new guidelines involve a new Symptom Screening Form while retaining previous precautions. The precautions & new guidelines could help ACC find cases of COVID-19 and contain the virus more effectively. 

All individuals of ACC are required to provide their health concerns before entering the Littleton, Castle Rock, or Parker Campus. If individuals of ACC have been exposed or were around someone already infected with the virus, then staying alert and contact tracing will help to slow the spread of COVID-19.

All staff of ACC are asked to complete a brief self-assessment checklist each day before arriving on campus. The self-assessment is the Symptom Screening form that staff can access through the portal and answer the symptom questions with a yes or no. Staff members who answer yes to any COVID-19 symptom are asked to remain home and contact their health provider. Supervisors and HR need to be informed of such cases before staying home. ACC staff don’t need to complete the Symptom screening form if they are not coming to any ACC campuses.

Also, students and authorized visitors need to complete this form as well. If students, authorized visitors or staff come to campus without filling the Symptom Screening form first, there will be a QR code at any ACC entry to complete this form before entering. The information gathered from symptom screening forms will be used to assist contact tracing for recent COVID-19 positive cases.

CDC approved face coverings, regularly washing hands, social distance from everyone and checking temperatures to see if it’s under 100.4. The precautions will still be there but the new guidelines will make positive cases of COVID-19 more accurate.