Case and Exposure Notification
July 8, 2022
This is a notification of recent COVID-19 cases that led to exposures on campus.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health recently broadened its definition of who is considered a “close contact” of someone confirmed to have COVID-19 and is therefore exposed.
An individual is considered to have been exposed (close contact) to a case during the infectious period if they shared the same indoor airspace at school with the infected person for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (this definition of shared indoor airspace is applied to classrooms, offices, and other similar-sized spaces). The previous requirement that an individual be within 6 feet of someone with COVID-19 for 15 or more minutes no longer applies.
This revision significantly expands the number of people considered to be exposed to a positive case. Following is a summary of cases recently reported to the district that fall under this expanded definition:
| Date Reported | Student/Employee | Campus | Notified of exposure |
| July 7 | Employee | Valencia | 5 |
| July 7 | Employee | Valencia | 1 |
| July 6 | Student | Canyon Country | 12 |
| July 5 | Employee | Valencia | 4 |
| July 5 | Student | Canyon Country | 12 |
In each of these cases, the person who is COVID-19 positive contacted the COVID-19 officer/compliance team. They are required to isolate for 10 days from the start of symptoms. On the fifth day, if their symptoms are improved, they can take a COVID-19 test. If the test is negative, they are able to leave isolation on the sixth day and must wear a high-grade mask for the duration of the 10 days. If they test positive, they must continue to isolate. All test results must be sent to the COVID-19 compliance team.
All those individuals considered to be exposed were notified, told to monitor their symptoms for 10 days and be tested for COVID-19, three to five days post exposure. They also must mask in all indoor spaces for 10 days following exposure with a high-grade mask. However, they do not need to quarantine unless they develop symptoms. If they develop COVID-19 symptoms, they must notify the COVID-19 compliance team at (661) 993-7670 and get tested for COVID-19 as soon as possible. Free testing is available on both campuses.
We understand the desire to know more about these situations, however, we must balance the concern that we all have for our co-workers and students with privacy laws. With that in mind, we are not able to provide more detail that could identify these individuals.
Self-Monitor for Symptoms
As a reminder, please continue to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms each day before coming to campus. DO NOT enter campus if you are currently experiencing or have in the past 14 days experienced these symptoms.
Reporting
If you are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms, please contact our COVID-19 Compliance Team.
Testing Available
Free COVID-19 testing is available at both the Valencia and Canyon Country campuses.
Vaccines/Boosters
For information about vaccinations, please visit myturn.ca.gov.
More Information
For more information about COVID-19, please refer to the CDC's Frequently Asked Questions. For details about resources available to college employees, contact our Employee COVID-19 Officer, Rian Medlin, at (661) 362-3424. She will help you with information about benefits available under federal, state, and local laws, such as workers’ compensation, as well as options for COVID-19 related leave, including district-offered sick leave, leave under collective bargaining provisions, and protections against retaliation and discrimination.
We appreciate everyone’s continued efforts to heed health and safety guidelines and do their part to protect the health of our college community.
– Incident Command Team