When COVID strikes your school: communication and management strategies Reprinted with permission of ‘The Writing Room’ www.thewritingroom.nz, jenny@thewritingroom.nz
Vaughan Couillault, Principal of Papatoetoe High School, shares his experience of navigating an outbreak of COVID that directly impacts a school and community.
Papatoetoe High School, a co-educational year 9–13 school in South Auckland, was thrust into the limelight during the February 2021 COVID outbreak. At 11.30am on February 14th Vaughan received, ‘a very unpleasant phone call from a very lovely person’ and embarked on, ‘a month’s worth of pain.’ A representative of Auckland Regional Public Health Service (ARPHS) notified Vaughan that there was a student with a positive COVID result at the school and there would be an announcement by the Director General Ashley Bloomfield that afternoon. Vaughan was advised that he would be able to notify the school community thirty minutes prior to the official announcement, giving him about two hours to co-construct a communication with ARPHS.
of Health website or Healthline. It made sense as we were in direct contact with the ARPHS who actually make the decisions on the ground, and we could get the latest updates out that bit faster than the Ministry of Health.’ From the beginning of the situation, Vaughan made a conscious decision that the school should manage communications. So, whilst the Ministry of Education assisted with security and traffic management at school, and ARPHS concentrated on testing and track and trace, Papatoetoe High School did what a school can do best and sought to keep families up to date and reassured, ‘We were very contactable and approachable. Communication Any questions, people could call me – and one “The Emergency ALERTS system Papatoetoe High School uses the Schoolminute after sending that first text I had my was easy to use and at my fingertips. links Emergenc y ALERTS system first phone call!’ I’d had it on my phone since we incorporating an app for school leaders Vaughan also worked with the media, ‘For signed up with School-links, and I’d to send texts to all parents and students the same reason, I wanted to be the person used it during the second lockdown back in August.” directly from their mobile phones. At that the community could see, someone they 1.15pm Vaughan used the app to text an knew. I kept to the facts and if I was asked a alert to notify parents and students of the situation and to check question that I couldn’t answer, I would go away and check. We their emails for further information. Synced to the school’s had a lot of support.’ student management system, texting ensured that the message Vaughan also drafted in the school’s student leaders to get key got out to everyone prior to the Director General naming messages out, ‘We had a team of students that we could trust, Papatoetoe High School as a location of interest. and again the families knew them.’ For the next four days, the school consistently used the same approach to communications: a text alert advising recipients Management to check their email accounts. By the 18th, the school moved In the first few hours, alongside spreading the word, the school to email and Facebook as the pace of communication changed needed to establish a testing centre onsite. The school leadership and the community became more attuned to checking social team was designated ‘essential service status’ and six members of staff formed a work bubble and were permitted to physically media for updates. School staff received the information aligned to the families, meet onsite, with the pre-requisite masks and social distancing. with the professional ramifications explained so that they were Priority testing was also made available for the senior leadership team, ‘Throughout the crisis, I could get tested at 9am and have all clear on what was required of them. As the outbreak progressed and the net was cast wider to my results back by lunchtime.’ Arriving at school at 7am, with the assistance of the onsite include student households, Vaughan and the team relied more and more on the school Facebook page to communicate to the staff, the ARPHS were able to open the onsite testing centre and community, ‘We have since had feedback from local businesses start swabbing by 9am. Going forward, each member of the senior leadership team that they looked to our Facebook page rather than the Ministry N Z Principal | S e p t e m b e r 2 0 2 1
took on a responsibility, ‘One was in charge of making sure all leadership team personally met or spoke with concerned parents the students had devices, one liaised with ARPHS track and trace to allay any fears. and so on. We worked relentlessly but it wasn’t stressful. We Over the course of the next couple of weeks, Vaughan became were all quite calm and felt that we had control of the situation.’ an expert on the cycles of the virus, ‘It is useful for schools to One of the key takeaways for Vaughan was that from the know that there is no point getting tested until five days after time the school gets the dreaded phone call, the school is going exposure. Also until five days have passed you are unlikely to be to be dealing with the implications for the next month, ‘You contagious, and this gives you a bit of a window to work with. can’t freak out. You just have to accept it will be a month before You don’t need to panic, you have time to put things in order.’ business as usual and manage the situation. If you don’t, it will The other eye opener was how a disease outbreak is administered be even longer.’ from the government end. The regional public health service For Papatoetoe High School, this realisation came on the day runs everything locally, reporting their decisions back to the after the school re-opened on the 22nd. On the Monday everyone Ministry of Health who disseminate it through their national who had a test and a negative result was channels of communication, meaning that allowed to return to school, and the school there can be a disconnect for short periods “ We ’ ve g o t t h e re l a t i o n s h i p successfully screened students on entry, of time, ‘I’d advise schools to get to know with the families and I felt that communicating with them was our watching out for the small numbers yet to be who you can talk to within your regional responsibility.” tested or awaiting results. The following day public health service and work closely with at 11.30am news came through that another them. Don’t be a barrier, focus on creating a student and her siblings had tested positive and everyone needed solution – and hopefully you can limit the fallout to four weeks, to be retested, ‘It was groundhog day. We texted all the families rather than six.’ an emergency alert, sent emails and put the announcement on Papatoetoe High School re-opened on March 8th with heartfelt our Facebook page. We kept students at school until 3.15pm, messages from its student leaders calling on people to be kind, staying in the same classroom that they had been in when we and Vaughan’s thanks for support and donations, shared across got the announcement. We re-opened our testing station, and mainstream media. In Vaughan’s words, ‘You use every tool at 1.45pm I was the crash test dummy having the first test. We you’ve got to communicate – text, email and Facebook.’ And started swabbing at 1.50pm.’ even the media itself. The decision to keep the students at school caused some Vaughan is happy for schools to contact him for further advice consternation as misinformation spread about forcing the or information. students to get tested but Vaughan, his reception staff and senior
PERMA NENT MARKE RS
WHITEBOARD MARKERS can be dry-wiped from glass or porcelain without a trace
are
WATERPROOF and
Lumocolor
SMUD GE PROOF on most surfaces
WHITEBOARD & PERMANENT markers DRY SAFE INK
can be left uncapped for days without drying up
available in bullet and chisel tip
REFI
LLABLE
CROWDFUNDING FOR ACTIVE KIWIS A NEW WAY TO FUNDRAISE FOR THINGS LIKE EQUIPMENT, NEW PROGRAMMES, FACILITIES UPGRADES OR TEAM TRAVEL.
GET YOUR SCHOOL PROJECT BOO$TED
BOOSTEDSPORT.ORG.NZ
SUPPORTED B Y:
Healthy Active Learning Healthy Active Learning is a joint government initiative between Sport New Zealand and the Ministries of Health and Education to improve the wellbeing of tamariki through healthy eating and drinking, and quality physical activity.
Join our national workforce In January 2022, Healthy Active Learning will be expanded to support over 800 schools, kura and their local communities across New Zealand.
Are you passionate about improving the wellbeing of our tamariki?
We are seeking capable and passionate people to join the network of Healthy Active Learning Advisors, based in Regional Sports Trusts. Working alongside school leaders, teachers, and local communities, you will be integral to contributing to the development of healthy and active school environments. Regional Sports Trusts will be recruiting Healthy Active Learning Advisors locally. View the job description and apply for a role in your region at https://careers.sportnz.org.nz/ healthy-active-learning-workforce or scan the QR code. Learn more about Healthy Active Learning at www.sportnz.org.nz