The Novel Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, is a respiratory illness that can spread from person to person. The virus that causes COVID-19 is a novel coronavirus that was first identified during an investigation into an outbreak in Wuhan, China. Currently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports several cases in the United States, including Texas.

Patients with COVID-19 have had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of:

• Fever
• Cough
• Shortness of breath

If you, or someone in your family, has symptoms of Coronavirus (fever, cough, shortness of breath), please call the Tarrant County Public Health (TCPH) hotline at 817-248-6299.

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth (T-zone).
• Stay home if you are sick. If you have a fever, please stay home until you are fever-free for 24-hours without the use of fever-reducing medication.
• Cover your mouth and nose with the inside of your elbow when you cough or sneeze, or use a tissue, and then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipes.

During Spring Break, the District facilities department cleaned and treated all campuses and other District buildings. The most effective tool to combat any outbreak of viruses, including the coronavirus, is the electrostatic application of germicidal mist. The mist is a germicidal detergent designed for use in hospitals and health care settings. The EPA has released an emerging viral pathogen policy, which approves the use of this particular product for combating coronavirus, or COVID-19. Electrostatic patented technology sprayers provide an electrical charge to solutions, allowing them to wrap conductive surfaces with an effective and even coverage. Double-charged particles envelope all conductive surfaces - shadowed, vertical and underneath. During the period the District is closed, District custodial staff will clean and treat all campuses and District buildings prior to classes resuming.

Additionally, every campus classroom, front office and nurse’s office has received disinfecting surface wipes to use to disinfect surfaces on a daily basis. This is in addition to regular cleaning and promoting healthy hygiene habits of washing your hands, covering your mouth when you cough and staying home when you are sick.

Upon return to school, our facilities department will continue misting campuses and other District buildings on a weekly basis and specified areas on an as-requested basis to fight against any outbreaks. Facility Services has checked all restrooms to ensure they have operable soap dispensers and all dispensers are filled with soap.

GCISD students and families are encouraged to check their email inbox regularly for updates.

Additionally, the District has created the GCISD Update, a regular email communication with the latest information important to families during this time. If you are not receiving the GCISD Update but would like to, sign up with your email address here.

As always, social media is also a great place to stay up to date on GCISD news. Follow the District on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

GCISD counselors have created this document filled with resources for families. Additionally, elementary school counselors have created this list of resources focused on elementary-aged children.

GCISD will provide FREE curbside meals to students during this closure. Read more about this opportunity here.

There are also various food pantries available in the area. Visit the resources below for more information and to check availability during this unique time:

• GRACE (https://www.gracegrapevine.org)
• 6 Stones (https://www.6stones.org/)
• 211.org (http://211.org/) - or call 211
• FoodPantries.org (https://www.foodpantries.org/ci/tx-grapevine)

During this time, remote technical support will be available Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. If you are a GCISD student or staff member who needs technical support, please submit a Help Ticket by signing into Classlink and clicking on the Help Desk button.

There is also online chat support available for students and staff. To access this feature, after you have logged into the Help Desk, click the blue chat bubble in the lower right corner. After you search for your issue, there are helpful articles available and also the Live Chat option. Click Live Chat to be connected to a technician. This chat will also be monitored 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

GCISD is also providing emergency repairs to student devices through curbside support. The curbside service will be available at the GCISD Administration Building on Fridays and Mondays. It is important to note that, in order to receive support, students and/or parents must submit a Help Ticket prior to receiving service by signing into Classlink and clicking on the Help Desk button on a GCISD device. Please allow at least 48 hours to process your request. Click here to read complete instructions on curbside tech support.

Additionally, there is a limited supply of chargers available to purchase online. If you would like to purchase a charger, please click here.

If you are a parent needing technical support for your student and your student does not know their login for Classlink, please call 817-251-5629. You will need to leave a message with your name, your student's name, grade level, campus and the best phone number to reach you. Your information will be forwarded to our remote support team and someone will contact you by phone as soon as possible.

During GCISD's current closure and Learning@Home period, it is important that students have access to the internet. To better serve our community and work towards our goal of removing barriers for students, GCISD is providing WiFi access outside of several campuses. There are also several internet providers with special offers for internet services. Click here to view information on getting connected.

Effective beginning March 27, the JPS School-Based Health Clinic (3050 Timberline Drive, Grapevine, Texas 76051) will be closed.

Patients and their families in need of services, can call 817-702-1100 and be routed to a pediatric provider that can assist them virtually via telehealth services. 

JPS Community Health offers same-day sick visits at the locations listed in this document (En español). To make an appointment, please call (817) 702-1100  Monday- Friday 7 am- 7 pm;  Saturday 7 am- 1 pm.

The GCISD Board of Trustees has voted to continue wage payments to all regular employees - contractual and non-contractual, salaried and non-salaried - who are instructed not to report to work during an emergency closing. Click here to read the complete resolution.

Additionally, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act requires certain employers to provide their employees with paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19. These provisions will apply from April 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. For more information, please view this flyer.

SAT
In response to COVID-19, College Board has canceled the May 2 SAT, as well as the March makeup exams. Registered students will receive refunds. Read more from College Board here. For students who took the SAT on March 4 at school, please visit the College Board’s website for more information on viewing and sending your results.

ACT
ACT has rescheduled its April 4 national test date to June 13. All students registered for the April 4 test date will receive an email from ACT in the next few days informing them of the postponement and instructions for free rescheduling to June 13 or a future national test date. Learn more from ACT here.

STAAR
Governor Greg Abbott announced that he has waived the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) testing requirements for the 2019-2020 school year. Additionally, Governor Abbott is requesting that the Department of Education (DOE) waive federal testing requirements for the 2019-2020 school year.

AP Exams
The College Board released a new statement on March 20 that included important information, including:

• Providing free remote learning resources.
• Investing in the development of a new at-home testing option.
• Traditional face-to-face exam administrations will not take place.
• Some students may want to take the exam sooner rather than later, while the content is still fresh. Other students may want more time to practice. For each AP subject, there will be 2 different testing dates.

Read the full statement and see course-specific information here.

Math Telescoping
Math Telescoping Acceleration Assessments will not be given on April 18th, 2020 as originally planned. The new date is tentatively set for May 16th, 2020. Families will not need to re-register for the replacement date. That registration deadline for this first administration has already passed; however, a second date is still planned for June. Please visit the website for updates.

GT/ASPIRE
For complete GT/ASPIRE updates during the District's closure, visit the Advanced Academics Closure Updates page. Here you will find information on Elementary GT LEAD parent notifications, GT/ASPIRE testing and much more.

Credit By Exam
Counselors are currently accepting registrations for Credit By Exam through April 16, 2020 for the previously published Credit By Exam May 16th, 2020 administration. The GCISD Assessment Department is currently working to provide an on-line option and will provide additional information to registered students as those details become available.

GCISD counselors have created a Closure Resources webpage with answers to questions similar to this that would typically be answered by your campus counselor. The page also includes information for dual credit students, those looking for college recommendation letters and much more. If you have additional questions, please email your campus counselor or counseling@gcisd.net.

iUniversity Prep, which serves students in fifth through twelfth-grade, is unfortunately not an option at this point in the semester. The school is currently operating at virtual capacity and enrollment for the Spring semester is closed. As iUniversity Prep uses a separate curriculum, the scope and sequence is not the same as traditional schools and, therefore, students are at a different pace than our middle and high school students. Additionally, not all courses that are offered in GCISD have an iUniversity Prep equivalent.