The Kingfisher Board of Education adjusted its “Return to Learn” to allow for less stringent protocols while still following guidelines of health officials and stressing safety for both students and staff, said the district’s top administrator.

The changes were approved Monday during the board’s October regular meeting.

Board members approved the original plan at their August meeting. It covers a variety of topics from face coverings to daily screenings, safety practices and more.

Among the more sig nificant changes approved Monday were at-school procedures followed if a student or staff member exhibited a fever of 100.4 degrees or higher.

Originally, that person was immediately isolated from others and sent home for a period of anywhere from three to 10 school days depending on taking a COVID-19 test and its results.

Now, while the student or staff member will still be sent home, the length of time isn’t pre-determined.

“Kingfisher Public Schools will work with Kingfisher County Health Department, local physicians and parents to deter mine the cause of sickness. Based on the findings, students may or may not enter the current COVID protocol as determined by CDC guidelines and/or State Health Department recommendations,” the policy states.

Superintendent Jason Sternberger said the policy was submitted to health department officials before being presented to the board.

He said it received the approval of Andrea Cooper, the coordinating nurse for the Kingfisher County Health Department, and Jan Fox, regional administrative director for District 2 of the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

Sternberger said he’s been asked about the policy requiring face coverings in school buildings being loosened or eliminated.

“Right now it’s working,” he said. “We haven’t seen any big increases so the policy is effective. I don’t see the need to change it right now, but we’ll continue to monitor everything.”

The board will continue meeting in the high school cafeteria at least through 2021.

It approved meeting dates and the location for the entirety of 2021.

It will continue to meet the first Monday of every month except July and September.

There will be no July meeting, rather the board, as is custom, will meet near the end of the fiscal year (June 29). It will also meet Tuesday, Sept. 7, as the day before is Labor Day.

The board since the spring has begun each meeting in the Administration Office prior to adjourning and reconvening in the cafeteria, which is a bigger space.

Members had the option to continue that practice or just schedule each meeting to begin in the cafeteria.

“I think it’s been better in here,” said President Mike Copeland. “We’ve seemed to have more participation from the public; there’s more space.”

In other action, the board:

• Approved monthly encumbrances from the general fund, co-op fund and child nutrition fund;

• Approved a book fair fundraiser request for Gilmour library;

• Was presented an annual drop-out and remediation report, which is required by state statute;

• Approved using the ACT as the locally-selected, nationally recognized assessment for the College and Career-Readiness Assessment for the 2020-21 school year.