About the Pilot
SOS is designed as an eight week learning collaborative to model the use of rapid antigen testing for COVID19 to support California elementary and middle schools committed to reopening safely with reduced risk to staff, teachers, and students in 8 to 10 districts across the state.
Easy, Fast & Reliable Testing
Rapid antigen testing for COVID19 is easy to use, can be administered onsite by trained non-medical district staff, and provides results within 15 minutes. Read more about the SOS Pilot.
Partners
SOS is coordinated by the Public Health Institute and works in close collaboration with the California Department of Public Health, participating school districts, and in dialogue with unions and parents. Our software platform is Primary.Health. Major funding for SOS comes from The California Endowment. Additional support is provided from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the Ballmer Group through PHI’s Together for Health Initiative.
Updates from SOS
We support @DrPanMD Keep Schools Open and Safe Act to add COVID to required school vaccines without personal belief exemptions. This would allow schools to focus on what they do best - educating our kids. @CSBA_Now @ACSA_info
@MelodyGutierrez @LATimes
All California schoolchildren must be vaccinated against COVID-19 under new bill
State Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento) will announce Monday a bill to add COVID-19 vaccines to California's list of ...
lat.ms
Sharing Knowledge
Tools & Resources
Check out our Tools & Resources page for key materials to help with your testing program.
Goal of the Pilot
SOS Goal: The SOS goal is to create and evaluate a learning collaborative to model routine rapid antigen testing for students and staff with a diverse group of California elementary schools serving historically marginalized communities, that can help support safer reopening of schools during the pandemic.Through this learning community of participating districts, we will share and document what we learn and disseminate tools and experiences.
Participating School Districts
Compton Unified School District
Los Angeles County
Fresno Unified School District
Fresno County
La Honda Pescadero School District
San Mateo County
McSwain Union Elementary School District
Merced County
Oakland Unified School District
Alameda County
Planada Elementary School District
Merced County
Pomona Unified School District
Los Angeles County
Ravenswood City School District
San Mateo County
Redwood City School District
San Mateo County
Rosemead School District
Los Angeles County
Weaver Union School District
Merced County
Commitment to Racial and Health Equity
SOS is committed to advancing racial equity in health and education across California, and will prioritize pilots where reopening is most urgent, i.e. schools serving: large numbers of children of essential workers; predominantly Black and Latino communities hardest hit by COVID-19; students requiring special education and other special needs, and those not doing well with remote learning.