Zoe Howard
Executive Features Editor
In January, Mira Costa High School transitioned to a new COVID-19 screening platform called Ruvna. Parents receive a text every day at 6:45 AM with the link to the health screening, which asks questions about their student’s symptoms, including questions about whether their student has participated in social gatherings with over 15 people or three households and if their student has traveled outside of California within a 10 day period. As the guidelines from the Los Angeles Department of Public Health change, the questions will alter too. After filling out the screening, if the student is approved, they receive a QR code for the day. However, if the student is not approved, they are not allowed to participate in school sports. Ruvna is an important component to making sure everyone feels safe while on campus.
This system will help ensure parents and students feel comfortable going to school during the pandemic. Costa is also taking other measures such as social distancing, wearing masks, cleaning equipment, practicing in cohorts, and submitting a negative COVID-19 test to ensure everyone’s safety. The protocols in place, including Ruvna, makes the process efficient and easy to navigate.
Continuing with in-person training during the COVID-19 pandemic allows for students to engage with their teammates and coach, something that’s difficult to achieve when teams are just meeting online. It is extremely important for athletes’ mental health to continue to be part of their sport’s community, and going on campus helps to keep that community alive. Ruvna aids schools to make sure athletes can attend in-person training, which in turn helps athletes’ mental health.
In addition, sports are also a way students manage stress and anxiety, which is especially important during this time. Students returning to sports allows them to get back into a routine and return to a type of normalcy. Ruvna is helping this happen in a safe way for everyone. Ruvna is also the system being used for TK-2 students and teachers in Manhattan Beach Unified School District who are currently in a hybrid model. In the future, this would most likely be used at Costa, as well. Ruvna shows promise for the future so all students can return to school.
As sports go back to practicing in-person, Ruvna helps put people’s mind at ease to know that their teammates are adhering to guidelines from the Los Angeles Department of Public Health. Thus allowing athletes to return to a more normal schedule and socialize with their teammates in a safe way.
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