Raptor Technologies, a trusted partner to over 32,000 K-12 U.S. schools, has been having conversations with districts and schools throughout the pandemic to understand their needs and help them address COVID-19. Conversations have focused on how schools will keep students and others with COVID-19 exposure risk out, facilitate contact tracing, distribute resources to students, and manage other critical priorities, such as cleaning and disinfecting, to keep their students, staff, and communities safe.
In their Cleaning, Disinfecting, and Hand Hygiene Toolkit for School Administrators, the CDC highlights why disinfecting and routine cleaning are critical to reduce the risk of exposure to COVID-19, stating the virus may spread by touching a surface or object that has the virus on it and then touching your own mouth, nose, or possibly your eyes. Cleaning and disinfecting can reduce the risk of spreading infection by reducing and killing germs on surfaces.
Schools can and should complete both routine cleaning and disinfecting making sure to follow all instructions on the disinfectant each day. To further decrease the risk of exposure, schools should consider routine deep cleanings and disinfecting services over weekends or school closures. This will allow licensed cleaning companies or the schools trained custodial team to use strong disinfectants or equipment like foggers or UV light devices to kill the virus throughout the school.
Ensuring Every School Stays Clean and Safe
Keeping up with all the cleaning services can quickly become overwhelming if the district and each school within the district does not have a process to manage, schedule, and track all the moving components.
Raptor Drill Manager, a component within the Raptor Emergency Management platform that was designed to help schools simplify drills, can help schools streamline and manage their COVID-19 cleaning services.
Districts can publish and share cleaning service requirements in a matter of minutes, so that school administrators can quickly schedule services in compliance with district mandates. Schools can have multiple schedules like having multiple types of drills that allow them to track cleaning services for various components. For example, a school may use the system to manage, schedule, and track cleaning services within the school building, but also for their busses or for tasks like cleaning and changing heating and air conditioning system filters.
The system sends automated notifications to remind each school before the scheduled service, and the school and district administrators can stay updated on each schools services schedule and status. The reporting tab allows administrators to produce complete and accurate status reports for the individual school or for the entire district, making it easy to confirm that each school is being routinely deep cleaned and disinfected. This reporting can be used to help the school or district get reimbursed for cleaning services through COVID-19-related safety grants or CARES funding.
Provide Assurance to Your School Community
Schools along with protecting your population from this life-threatening virus must address student and staff emotional and mental health. Staff need to feel safe to teach well, and students need to feel safe so they can focus and learn. Providing assurance to your students, staff, and community that your school is taking the necessary steps to reduce COVID-19’s spread is just as critical as cleaning and disinfecting.
With Raptor Drill Manager, schools can easily share the cleaning schedule with others, including posting the schedule online so your students, staff, and community can see your commitment to keeping the school clean. Clearly communicating this commitment will (1) be evidence that your school is taking all necessary steps and (2) reinforce that your students and staff will be in a clean, safe learning environment.
Click here to see additional back-to-school guidelines and suggestions we have compiled from our conversations with districts or contact us to learn more or to schedule a personalized demo.
