A colorful salad with edible flowers on top.

Health & Safety

As a school, we are committed to creating the conditions under which our community can thrive. Students, families, and teachers receive support from school administrators, who utilize the guidance of health agencies to maintain a learning environment that is safe and promotes the well-being of every community member.

Community Health Policies

No-Nut Policy

Nuts and nut products are not allowed at Berkwood Hedge School at any time. This includes both tree nuts and groundnuts of all kinds. Seeds are permitted.

While we do enforce our No-Nut Policy, we cannot guarantee that Berkwood Hedge School is completely nut-free. Berkwood Hedge School makes a reasonable effort to purchase nut-free products for the School. The School makes a reasonable effort to inform those who might bring food onto the school's campus such as parents, outside caterers, and any rental parties. Our school lunch vendor School Foodies provides healthy, nut-free meals.

Food allergies can be life threatening. As a result of this, accidental exposure to foods must be reduced in the school setting. It is the desire of Berkwood Hedge School to partner with parents/guardians and students to ensure a safe educational environment for students with food allergies. This is a shared responsibility between the family, the school and the student. While it is not reasonable to expect a completely food allergy free environment at Berkwood Hedge School, when all parties work together, the risk of accidental exposure can be greatly reduced.

Read our full No-Nut Policy

COVID-19 Information

Berkwood Hedge School follows the guidance on the prevention of respiratory diseases in schools from the California Department of Public Health.

We ask that families report all positive cases to [email protected] immediately.

In accordance with CDC recommendations, if you test positive for COVID-19, you must stay home until your symptoms are improving and you have been fever-free without the use of medication for at least 24 hours. Upon returning to school, you should take additional precautions, including wearing a mask indoors, for 5 days.

If you have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, you should wear a mask indoors around others for 10 days, especially if you may be in contact with someone who is at higher risk.

Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds

If you have cold, flu, COVID, or gastrointestinal symptoms, stay home and test.

Please email [email protected] if you have questions.

AQI / Smoke Day Protocols

Wildfires are part of the California landscape. They create significant safety hazards for our school community related to fire and smoke. We follow guidance from Cal Fire and the City of Berkeley regarding evacuations, warnings and school closures.

Smoke can also negatively impact the air quality in Berkeley. When smoke is present, we monitor the Air Quality Index (AQI), using standard measurements identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). We will track the AQI utilizing a variety of reliable sources including AirNow/EPA and BAAQMD (Bay Area AirQuality Management District).

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is as follows:

GREEN / Good (0-50)
YELLOW / Moderate (51-100)
ORANGE / Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (101-150)
RED / Unhealthy (151-200)
PURPLE / Very Unhealthy (201-300)

If the air quality reaches 100, we will keep the children indoors and if it reaches 125, we will consider closing school. In deciding whether or not to open school on days when smoke is present, we look at a number of factors including air quality, likelihood of containment, wind and other weather predictions, and recommendations from agencies such as Cal Fire. We will remain open when we feel it is safe to do so and use air purifiers in all of our rooms. We believe that when possible, maintaining a normal routine for our children is one way to respond to these challenges.

Additional Resources

An group of elementary-aged girls making soup.