Rumor Mill-4899

Published October 13, 2011

The purpose of this section is to answer any questions parents, teachers or community members might have regarding the school district and to set the record straight in regards to any rumors that might be circulating.  If you have a question or have heard a rumor that you would like for us to address, simply SEND US your questions and we will respond to them in upcoming issues of IN FOCUS.  Below are some of the questions we received since our last newsletter.

What is the county's policy on notifying parents of highly infectious diseases?

Williamson County Schools follows the Department of Health's communicable disease protocols when they are informed of communicable illness that might threaten the health of the public, especially in a school setting.  The Department of Health is informed of all cases of communicable disease by the report of a licensed healthcare provider and then implements their own procedure in determining the origin and possibility of a known infectious illness leading to a wide-spread communicable disease outbreak. 

There are very specific protocols that must be followed when a communicable disease outbreak occurs.  Our school district is not allowed to give out any health information, however, that would ever involve personally identifiable information as to a specific student or staff member in our school district, unless we were specifically required to do so by the Department of Health.

Are Williamson County teachers allowed to use Twitter to keep parents and students informed?

Williamson County Schools teachers may use Twitter as a communication tool as long as they follow the proper protocols.  Teachers must participate in professional development regarding school and teacher Twitter accounts before they will be allowed to set up an official Twitter account.  The first session was held last month and future sessions are planned.  Teachers may find information on professional development in Avatar.