SB County Superintendent of Schools distributes at-home COVID-19 test kits to school districts

As students returned from winter break this week amid surging COVID-19 cases and test kits increasingly difficult to come by, the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools (SBCSS) was engaged in a massive distribution endeavor after receiving nearly 400,000 at-home antigen (rapid) COVID-19 test kits Saturday morning, Jan. 8, to be distributed to county schools.

Those kits came after Gov. Newsom announced on Dec. 22 that the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) would provide approximately six million at-home rapid tests for all K-12 public school students in California.

SBCSS served as the hub that distributed test kits to students in 33 school districts and charter schools countywide; each district and charter received their allotment by Wednesday, Jan. 12.

“Testing continues to be a valuable mitigation strategy to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and keep our schools open,” said County Superintendent Ted Alejandre. “We had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of these at-home test kits from the state. Now that they are here, I am proud of how our staff swiftly set into motion the plans developed in collaboration with our district and charter partners to get them distributed as quickly as possible.”

According to SBCSS Communications Director Jenny Owen, by midday Saturday, 11 school districts and nine charters had already received their kits, made possible by the outstanding efforts of the SBCSS team.

“They did an exemplary job from the planning process through to the implementation of the actual distribution, and we know how important it is to get them into the hands of kids,” Owen pointed out. “They did a remarkable job.”

Each iHealth test kit contains two rapid tests that provide results in 15 minutes. Per the Office of the Governor, the use of these test kits is voluntary. 

“Our hope is that they’re another tool added within the other layers of protection that are already in place and to help with reducing the transmission,” said Owen.

Colton Joint Unified School District (CJUSD) received 20,500 test kits, enough to distribute one kit per student in grades TK-12 at its 27 elementary, middle, and high schools next week.

“We are grateful to be able to provide this resource to our families,” remarked Katie Orloff, CJUSD Communications Director. “It gives them another tool to help parents assess whether or not their students may have COVID-19 and another layer of safety.”

Rialto Unified School District (RUSD) students returned to classes Tuesday, Jan. 11; at the end of the day, each of the 24,188 students at 29 school sites received a test kit.

“Our students were urged to be tested before coming back from a three-week winter break. The student kits that were given to parents/guardians on January 11 are for future student symptoms of COVID-19,” indicated RUSD Spokesperson Syeda Jafri. “If symptoms occur, parents/guardians may be able to test their child at home. If symptomatic, any time a person has an opportunity to test, it not only helps their own health and safety but also the health and safety of others, and inevitably assist with the spread of the virus.”

San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) received the home test kits late Tuesday; one kit was distributed to each SBCUSD student today, Friday, Jan. 14. SBCUSD indicated in a message sent home to parents late Thursday afternoon the tests are intended for students only and that this was a one-time allocation.

“As COVID-19 cases continue to rise, these at-home test kits can offer a safe, quick, and convenient way for students to monitor their health and help to reduce transmission,” the advisory noted.  

San Bernardino County Department of Public Health offers free COVID-19 test kits for families; visit sbcovid19.com/rapidtests for more information.