Thurston County Public Health & Social Services provides a flowchart with guidance on managing COVID-19 in schools. Read the latest version: 

• TCPHSS School Communication Plan Flowchart (Last updated: February 17, 2023)

If you have questions about COVID-19 at your school, please contact your school nurse. Visit the health room page on your school's website for contact info.

COVID-19 is a respiratory illness caused by a new, or “novel” coronavirus that was not identified in humans before December 2019. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that usually cause mild respiratory illnesses such as the common cold.

Most people will recover on their own, but some people can develop more serious complications, such as pneumonia, and require medical care or hospitalization. Older people and people with chronic illnesses are more likely to get very sick from COVID-19.

It is most commonly spread from an infected person to others through:

• in the air by coughing and sneezing
• close personal contact, such as touching or shaking hands
• touching an object or surface with the virus on it, then touching your mouth, nose, or eyes before washing your hands.

People are thought to be most contagious when they are the sickest, though some spread is possible before people show symptoms.

Symptoms ​may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms or combinations of symptoms may have COVID-19:

• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fever
• Chills
• Muscle pain
• Sore throat
• New loss of taste or smell
• Other less common symptoms include nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea

Masks are currently optional in our schools and school buses. Students, staff, and volunteers may choose to wear masks based on their individual and community health needs. Individual mask choices should be respected.

Please note that masks will be required in certain school areas, such as in school health and isolation rooms.

See a list of local testing and vaccination locations on the Thurston County COVID Dashboard.