COVID-19 Testing opportunities

Parents/Guardians

Since the start of the school year, we have prioritized in-person learning while protecting the safety and health of our students, staff, and families. This has included access to regular COVID-19 testing for our educators and staff. We’re pleased to now be able to offer regular COVID-19 testing to our students, as well.

Through the State of Minnesota’s partnership with Vault, we will now be offering free COVID-19 testing kits to students upon request.

Beginning May 11th, and continuing every other Tuesday we will be collecting completed test kits. Students can pick up a test kit in the PHS or PWMS health office to take home on the day before collection. That kit is the same one used at many of the state’s community testing sites as well as offered through the COVID-19 At-Home testing program.

Here are the steps to take the test:

1. Make sure you have Zoom downloaded on the device you’re using to test. You can download Zoom by going to this link: https://zoom.us/download
2. When you’re ready to take your test, go to this link: VLT.CO
3. You can create a login using your email or by creating a username and password.
4. Finally, you’ll provide some basic information and then enter in the testing kit ID, which starts with FR or SD. You’ll then be prompted to meet a Vault test supervisor over Zoom. The test supervisors will give you instructions and make sure your student does the test the right way.

After your student takes the test, he or she will return it to school the following day, where school officials will collect the kits and ship them to a Vault lab for processing.

Once it arrives at the lab, individual test results will be ready in 24-48 hours, provided directly to the email associated with the Vault Health account. You can also access results by logging in with your email or username on Vault’s website: app.vaulthealth.com

The test results are NOT provided to the school nor reported in any identifiable way. Students and families are encouraged to inform schools of positive results so the school can take steps to prevent the spread of the virus to other students and staff.

• This optional screening program is intended to identify asymptomatic students. Participating in this testing without symptoms does not require any isolation or quarantine while awaiting results.
• Students who are under 18 years old will need a parent or legal guardian to provide consent on the student’s behalf.
• This program is provided at no cost to you. Your insurance company will not be billed.
• We can provide assistance if you don’t have a reliable internet connection at home.

The consent form can be found by clicking here.