THE COLE ACADEMY
Parent ResourcesCovid-19
Precautions and Information
Masks are recommended to be worn indoors by staff members, parents/guardians, family members, visitors and children over the age of 2 when COVID-19 community levels are high (as indicated via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (website: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/community-levels.html)
- We recommend that staff wear masks in our infant and toddler program where children are under the age of 2 or have special needs and cannot wear masks.
- Children ages 2 years and older who choose to wear a mask can do so, except during nap time, mealtimes and outdoor time.
- When a child or staff member is identified as being positive for COVID-19, notification will be provided to all staff and families in the group that were exposed to that person.
- The exposed children and staff have the option to quarantine by remaining home IF they are symptom-free. Parents and staff should be on the lookout for symptoms and test as appropriate.
- If an exposed child/staff person is symptom-free and does not choose to quarantine, masks will be required to be worn indoors by exposed staff members and children over the age of 2 for 10 days after the last close contact.
- If an exposed child, staff or visitor has ANY COVID-19 symptom, that person should isolate and test.
Catered
Lunches
The Cole Academy provides all drinks and snacks on a state-nutritionist-reviewed menu throughout the day. Parents may bring their child’s lunch or may choose to purchase from one of our caterers:
Lanakila Express Chefs: Well-balanced nutritional menu
Keiki Lunchbox: Organic menu for kids
EMERGENCY
Alert System
This is our contact system for mass voice, text and email alerts. Enter your user name and password to update how you would like us to contact you.
Kindergarten
Readiness and Planning
Post-Preschool Enrollment Program
See your center director to initiate planning for application and enrollment in your child’s next educational environment after preschool.
Here are some resources while considering options and what school might be best for your child:
PRIVATE: Hawaii Association of Independent Schools
PUBLIC: Hawaii Department of Education
IMMUNIZATION AND
Daily Wellness Greetings
It is essential that all children stay up to date on immunizations. Forms are required prior to admission, and they are also required to be updated throughout a child’s attendance at school.
Don’t forget seasonal flu shots, too. The State of Hawaii and the CDC urge vaccinations to keep children healthy, especially in group environments such as preschools.
Health and Wellness
At The Cole Academy, children's health and safety are among our top responsibilities.
The Cole Academy's "Daily Wellness Greetings" helps teachers, parents and children pay extra-close attention to any signs of illness before the school day starts.
The Cole Academy greatly appreciates our families being extra careful and attentive to colds or any other signs of illness, in terms of staying home at the first signs of any fever or illness. Our families have been additionally cautious about this, and it is sincerely appreciated by all fellow students and staff.
Our families and staff also all use hand-sanitizing gel upon entering and exiting the building. Preschoolers and their teachers are excellent at washing their hands and do so throughout the whole school day. Did you know you need to wash your hands as long as it takes you to sing the alphabet in order to ensure they're really clean? Cole Academy teachers and kids do this "by the book."
Our campus has exceptional sanitation resources such as infrared faucets — no need to touch them to turn them on! The teaching staff and our custodians are as vigilant as ever about sanitizing and keeping the shared environments as clean as possible.
About Our Daily Wellness Greetings
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the primary means to reduce the spread of influenza is to focus on early identification of ill students, which is why we are implementing a new DAILY WELLNESS GREETING that we developed in concert with the CDC and state health department guidance, as well as our consulting physician.
This quick daily procedure will take place upon drop-off:
1) As usual, a staff member will greet you and your child.
2) Your child's temperature will be checked.*
3) The teacher will gently feel your child’s neck-area lymph nodes.
4) The teacher will look for visual signs of illness or discomfort.
5) The staff member will discuss with you if you have noticed anything out of the norm physiologically or with your child’s schedule (i.e., didn't sleep well, eyes bothering him or her, any change in eating patterns, any vomiting or diarrhea, any complaints of body aches or sore throat).
*The temperature check will be via ear thermometer. If a thermometer is not immediately and conveniently available, the teacher will assess by hand the child’s forehead. If your child seems hot, we will wait until a thermometer check can be made. Please note that if your child has a fever of 100.5° F or above, he or she will not be able to stay at school that day and will go home with you at that time.
If your child is close to the threshold of 100.5° F, we will recommend that you take your child home, and we will not administer fever-reducing medication.
Should you choose to have your child remain in school if he or she is warmer than normal but not at the threshold, we will repeat a temperature check an hour later, and if at that time, it is 100.5° F or higher, we will contact you to pick your child up immediately.
If your child becomes ill while at school, we will call you to pick him or her up. Such illnesses include but are not limited to:
– Has temperature of 100.5° F or higher
– Is vomiting
– Has 2 or more diarrheal bowel movements
– Any communicable disease
We appreciate your understanding about the necessity of taking this measure. We want our schools to remain as safe and healthy as possible. During the first few days and weeks of this monitoring, staff and directors will be refining the implementation of the Daily Wellness Greeting, and we appreciate your patience.
As a reminder, your child may return to the Academy ONLY if he or she has been symptom-free for at least 24 hours and with a physician’s note stating that he or she has been seen, has been treated and/or no longer has a communicable disease.
We greatly appreciate you being extra careful and attentive to colds or any other signs of illness in terms of staying home at the first signs of any fever or illness.
Thanks also for using the hand gel at the front every time you come and go! If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask your Director.
Protect
Child Identities
Parent Safety Tip: Protecting Your Child from Identity Theft
Believe it or not, identity thieves often prey on children’s identities to commit financial fraud. According to the Federal Trade Commission, 5 percent of all identity theft complaints received involve people younger than 18 years old.
The Cole Academy does not retain children’s Social Security numbers for permanent files; however, your child’s information may be on file in other locations, including doctors’ offices or other schools or agencies or on hand with relatives, acquaintances and household employees. We want to share these tips on monitoring your children’s identity just as you would monitor your own credit.
The following is from a recent television news report (from WTHR in Indianapolis) with more details:
“With thousands of cases of childhood identity theft each year, major credit bureaus say parents shouldn’t make assumptions when it comes to their kids’ credit. And monitoring your child’s credit is free.
“‘We can let the parent know if indeed there is a credit file opened in that child’s name,’ explained Steve Ely, president of consumer services for the Equifax credit bureau. ‘If you were to discover that your 9-year-old has a credit file open…that’s a pretty big red flag that there’s something wrong there and you need to look into that.’
“Equifax, TransUnion and Experian all allow parents to request what’s called a Minor Child Credit File Check. While the check-up is free, the credit bureaus do require parents to submit copied documentation such as a driver’s license, Social Security card and/or birth certificate to verify identities before they will release credit file information.
“If you request a file check for your kids, you’ll then be notified with one of two responses: either your child has no credit file (that’s good) or a credit file linked to your child’s Social Security number already exists. If your child has a credit file, you will also be told what steps are needed to protect your child’s credit and identity, and how to remove any fraudulent activity from your child’s credit file.
“A common red flag that something is amiss is unexpected mail such as collection letters or letters regarding financial accounts. Watch for credit reports in your child’s name even though the child has never applied for credit. If you have any reason to be suspicious, check it out.”
Credit Bureau Information Options and Instructions for Minor Child Credit Check:
TRANSUNION: 800-916-8800 – View Website
EXPERIAN: 888-397-3742 – View Website
Students
Hawaii Campuses
Faculty
Established
Request a Tour
Please call or text the enrollment line at 808-469-8900, or email rebekah@thecoleacademy.com to set up a tour.