The following email was sent on Friday, Dec. 4, to all school psychologists from Social Workers and Psychologists Chapter Leader Raul Garcia.

As part of the city's school reopening plan, the DOE is enforcing mandatory random weekly COVID testing for in-person students and staff. No student will be allowed to stay in school for in-person learning without a consent form or exemption form signed by their parent or guardian.

Following the UFT's intervention, the city has adopted a disability-based exemptions policy that requires all students who qualify for the exemption to be tested. Under the new policy, parents can request an exemption only from in-school testing.

Due to your expertise regarding students with disabilities and the school environment, the DOE sees school psychologists as uniquely qualified to determine if there is evidence in the student’s records to support the exemption. The exempted student must still be tested if selected for the random sample, but the responsibility will rest with the parent. The parent will have seven days to have the child tested outside of school and must bring the test results to school.

You should approve a disability exemption if you find that, because of the student’s disability, testing would be dangerous for the student or school/testing personnel, or traumatic for the student. This should not be an overly time-consuming task. In most cases, you should be able to make your determination by reviewing the student's IEP. You may also speak with school staff who are familiar with the student's needs or schedule a call with the student's parent to ask questions. You do not need to do an in-person assessment or interview with the student.

Either a parent or the school can initiate an exemption request on behalf of a student.

If you deny an exemption request, an administrator will inform the parent that consent for testing is required for the student to return to school in person.

See these documents for further details:

• DOE guidance on disability exemptions
• Student request form for exemptions for students with disabilities
• Student request form for medical exemptions
• DOE's letter to District 75 staff about testing policies
• DOE's letter to District 75 families about testing policies

We understand a lot is being asked of school psychologists during this crisis on top of the challenges we're all facing. Thank you for the hard work you do every day to keep students safe. You are appreciated.