North Dakota K-12 Smart Restart - Healthy Return to Learning - Version 3.0 - November 4, 2020

Oct 15, 2026

North Dakota K-12 Smart Restart: Healthy Return to Learning (Version 3.0, November 4, 2020) provides structured guidance for safely restoring student learning and outlining expectations for schools. It defines key public health terms such as case investigation, close contact, community mitigation, and contact tracing, then connects these concepts to school opening recommendations, learning model options, and health and safety plan requirements. It also covers academic support, special populations, social emotional learning, child nutrition, assessment, funding, and coordination between local public health and schools.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages31

Reading Time1 h 18 min

AccessFree to download

Definitions and Abbreviations

Definitions

Abbreviations

Introduction to the North Dakota Healthy Return to Learning Team

Recommendations on School Opening

Foundation

Challenges to Returning to Face-to-Face Learning

Assumptions

Goals

North Dakota School Expectations

Returning to Face-to-Face Learning

Learning Model Options to Consider

Health and Safety Plan Requirements

Guiding Questions and Considerations

Academic Support

Considerations for Special Populations

Social Emotional Learning

Child Nutrition

Assessment

Funding

LPH Decision-Making Protocol to Assist School Districts

Reasonable Communication Between LPH and Schools

HIPAA

FER PA

Disease Control Records

Supporting Resources

North Dakota K-12 Smart Restart HEALTHY RETURN TO LEARNING Version 3.0 November 4, 2020 Contents Definitions and Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................................ 3 Definitions ......................................................................................................................................................................... 3 Abbreviations ................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Introduction to the North Dakota Healthy Return to Learning Team............................................................. 5 Recommendations on School Opening...................................................................................................................... 6 Foundation ........................................................................................................................................................................ 6 Challenges to Returning to Face-to-Face Learning ........................................................................................... 7 Assumptions ..................................................................................................................................................................... 7 Goals .................................................................................................................................................................................... 8 North Dakota School Expectations .......................................................................................................................... 8 Recommendations ......................................................................................................................................................... 9 Returning to Face-to-Face Learning...................................................................................................................... 12 Learning Model Options to Consider ................................................................................................................... 13 Health and Safety Plan Requirements....................................................................................................................... 14 Guiding Questions and Considerations .................................................................................................................... 16 Academic Support ........................................................................................................................................................ 16 Considerations for Special Populations ............................................................................................................... 19 Social Emotional Learning ......................................................................................................................................... 20 Child Nutrition ............................................................................................................................................................... 22 Assessment ..................................................................................................................................................................... 24 Funding ................................................................................................................................................................................. 26 LPH Decision-Making Protocol to Assist School Districts.................................................................................. 27 Reasonable Communication Between LPH and Schools.................................................................................... 29 HIPAA ..........................................................

FAQs

What is “case investigation” in this guidance?

Case investigation refers to interviews conducted by NDDoH or public health partners with people who have COVID-19 to determine likely sources of infection, obtain symptoms and demographics, identify underlying health conditions, and find close contacts.

How does the document define a “close contact”?

A close contact is defined per CDC guidance as being within 6 feet of a COVID-19 case for a prolonged period (15 minutes cumulatively within 24 hours), including situations such as being coughed or sneezed on, or exposure as a healthcare worker without appropriate personal protective equipment.

What coordination is described between local public health (LPH) and schools?

The guidance includes recommendations for reasonable communication between LPH and schools, and provides an LPH decision-making protocol to assist school districts, including handling of disease control records and required compliance references.

Oct 15, 2026

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