H1N1 Virus Message to Staff from Supt. Terry Grier, May 1, 2009

The following is the text of a phone message that was sent to all San Diego Unified staff on Friday evening, May 1, 2009, regarding the closure of two schools because of probable cases of the H1N1 Influenza virus.

This is Superintendent Terry Grier with an important message to all staff about actions taken by the district today concerning the swine flu virus.

As you may have already heard, at the recommendation of the San Diego County Department of Health, the district today closed Kearny High and SCPA due to each school having one identified probable student with swine flu virus, now known as the H1N1 Influenza virus. These two schools will be closed to students for 14 days and will reopen on Monday, May 18.

According to the guidelines of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the San Diego County Department of Health, it is safe for our employees to continue working in these facilities during the closure to students. To provide an additional level of safety, we are directing employees at these two schools not to return to the school site for work until Wednesday, May 6. On Monday and Tuesday custodial staff will clean the schools and prepare them for employees to return to work on Wednesday.

We are in daily contact with the County Health Department and we will continue to follow the guidelines provided by CDC and we will continue to implement their recommendations in the days and weeks ahead.

We urge any of our staff who are sick to stay home from work and if you have symptoms common to this virus please contact your doctor. If you have questions about the flu, please contact the San Diego County Swine Flu Hotline at (858) 715-2250 or call your personal physician. Information is also posted on the district website at www.sandi.net.