D.C. Everest COVID-19 testing sites busy helping students and staff get back to class quickly

WESTON, Wis. (WSAW) - The D.C. Everest School District is offering free COVID testing for staff, students, and people connected with the school district, like students’ families. The district says the sites have been busy.

COVID testing service began Nov. 1. It is free. It is offered Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 7:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. at the Greenheck Field House. Testing is also offered on Tuesday and Thursday - 4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. two buildings down from the main DCE Administration Building. The building is located at 1699 Schofield Avenue. Signage will direct those registered for a COVID test to the testing location. Patients can remain in their vehicles.

“We heard from a lot of our families the issues with getting tested or where’d they go to get tested and the time frame they had to get tested. There was a lot of people driving long distance or waiting days to do it,” said Aaron Mull, director of community services, student safety, and special projects for D.C. Everest School District.

“The longer the delay in that testing, the more difficult it is because it’s longer that kids are not in school or even for our adult teachers and staff, it’s longer they aren’t on the job,” Jeff Lindell, the district’s student services director said.

That has been especially challenging this year, as there is no hybrid option for students who are quarantined, and statewide substitute teacher shortages have impacted schools’ ability to fill staffing holes.

“Two things we’re trying to do with this process is 1) trying to make it more convenient and 2) trying to get results as quickly as possible,” Lindell stated.

In the first week of testing, there were some kinks related to getting patients notified of their results, but those issues have been resolved. Mull said the sites have been busy ever since.

All testees and their parents/guardians must be masked.

D.C. Everest has partnered with Accelerated Clinical Laboratories. In order to obtain a COVID test, people will need to register in advance.

To pre-register:

Visit register.covidconnect.wi.gov.

• Complete the short screening questionnaire.
• Parents/guardians must complete the consent for minor children.
• When completing the demographic information, enter the email address to which you would like your registration confirmation and test results to be sent.
• Select “I’m being tested at a non-public site” and then enter your zip code to find the DCE testing locations.
• Upon completion, you will receive an email confirmation and a QR code for each person registered for testing.

The PCR COVID test results will be available in 24 - 28 hours. Those tested will be emailed a secure link where they can view and print their results. For complete pre-registration instructions, please visit our DCE COVID testing webpage at: www.dce.k12.wi.us/freecovidtesting.

To learn more about DCE’s COVID-19 protocols, click here.

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