Veracross Clearinghouse for COVID-19 Resources

Overview

In this article, discover resources related to COVID-19 (coronavirus). Do you have a resource you'd like to share? Reach out to your Veracross account manager and we'll add it.

General Resources

• CDC.gov is the official COVID-19 information page of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• ATLIS Clearinghouse is the clearinghouse article for COVID-19-related information shared by the Association of Technology Leaders in Independent Schools (ATLIS).
• SAIS Resource Clearinghouse is a clearinghouse article compiled by the Southern Association of Independent Schools (SAIS) related to COVID-19.
• Coronavirus (COVID-19): framework for decision making details the response protocols for the COVID-19 outbreak in Scotland.
• School and preparedness officials' perspectives on social distancing practices to reduce influenza transmission during a pandemic: Considerations to guide future work is a study originally released in 2018 that explores the benefits of social distancing for managing an influenza pandemic.

Veracross Resources

• Managing Extended Closings in Veracross is a starting point for managing extended closings through Veracross, with a focus on communication, closing school, and managing remote classrooms.
• Use Individual Events to Track COVID-19 Cases
• News Management Quick Start Guide: New to publishing articles? Start here. 
• Going Remote with Veracross: A UNIS Hanoi Case Study
• Reporting on Remote Learning Participation: leverage queries to monitor remote participation.
• LMS Quick Start Guide for Teachers: Provide this resource to teachers to learn the LMS. 
• Guide for Business Offices during COVID-19: Workflows for payment plan changes, tuition payment extensions, etc.

Conferences and Events

• VTC Virtual: A conference in late April that our friends at UNIS Hanoi are involved with. 
• Webinar: Admissions Events and Visits in the Midst of COVID-19

Blog Posts and Articles

• 8 Tips for School Administrators When Communicating about Coronavirus (COVID-19) to Parents and Students is a recent blog post on the Veracross website about developing community plans due to the evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) situation.
• Guidance for Social Distancing in Youth and Student Programs is a guide to social distancing put together by the Minnesota Department of Health.
• From our friends at Magnus Health:
  • How K-12 Schools Manage Prospective Students, Enrollment, And Student Health During COVID-19
  • Best Ways To Reduce Stress And Anxiety While Coping With COVID-19
  • The Benefits Of Schools Utilizing E-Learning
  • The Forgotten Part of Every School’s Outbreak Emergency Plan: How to Combat Bullying
• Here are articles and resources examining options for re-opening in the fall:
  • 15 Fall Scenarios — insidehighered.com
  • 9 Ways Schools Will Look Different When (And If) They Reopen — NPR
  • A Blueprint for Back to School — American Enterprise Institute (AEI)
  • COVID-19 Planning Considerations: Return to In-person Education in Schools — American Academy of Pediatrics
  • Comprehensive FAQ on Restarting School — thebeijinger.com

Remote Learning Tools and Security Tips

• This Is Emergency Remote Teaching, Not Just Online Teaching is an article written by a professor with 20 years of remote teaching experience that offers tips and tricks for offering high-quality remote education.
  
• Publish a Virtual Meeting URL in the Veracross "Daily Student/Faculty" Component
  
• Now that I Know How to Use Zoom, How Can I Use it to Teach?  is an article put together by our friends at Kinkaid School about using Zoom to teach remotely.
• Zoom's COVID-19 Support Page contains lots of tips for using Zoom for education and meetings.
• Here is more information on security best practices:
  • Cisco Webex Best Practices for Secure Meetings: Hosts
  • Security at Zoom
  • LogMeIn's Security White Paper

Tips and Tricks

From Sandia Prep

Each morning at 7:30 Jenny, our IT director and I host a "Coffee with Jenny and Allen". There is a standing Zoom meeting invite for all faculty and staff.

The meeting is quick and just a time to gather say hello and laugh. We do have a format:

1. Welcome.
2. We share an epic fail or success from the previous day.
3. We share a quick tip of the day.
4. Then we virtually clink our cups and start the day.

The check-in last 10 minutes and 10 minutes only. It has been very well received by faculty. Most importantly, it lets the faculty know that IT is there to help. We also host virtual "happy hours" with no structure, just conversation.