Information for Parents/Guardians regarding Head Lice
Head lice are a nuisance, but they do not carry any disease and have no reflection on the cleanliness of an individual. Head lice infestation is common with 6,000 to 12,000 cases reported during any given school year in the United States. Head lice do not jump from person to person; they crawl. Therefore, it is advised to avoid hugging friends or any prolonged head-to-head contact. The most common symptom of head lice is an itchy scalp, particularly at the base of the neck and behind the ears.
The school desires to take every precaution to prevent further spread and infestation. We ask that parents partner with us by thoroughly checking your child’s head each night for the next several weeks for the presence of head lice or their eggs, also called nits. If any are found, please notify the school, as well as your family physician. Your physician can advise you on which treatment to use. There are many over-the-counter treatments readily available.
Nits that are greater than 1/4 of an inch away from the scalp are considered old and are not an indication of an active infestation.
One of the most effective ways of eliminating head lice is to use a blow dryer and lice comb to remove the eggs, in addition to using a lice shampoo treatment. Once a child has been treated, it is advised that a repeat treatment occurs in 7-10 days to treat the eggs, which may have hatched. Students may return to school the next day after being treated. It is advisable that they are re-checked regularly for the next several weeks following treatment to make sure it was effective.
If students feel like their heads itch, please take the time to check them for the presence of head lice at home. The students may also inform the teacher if the itching begins at school. However, there will be NO classroom-wide checks. Please encourage your children to avoid the sharing of hairbrushes, combs, sports helmets, hats, sweaters and jackets, and hair accessories. Girls may want to keep their hair pulled back for the next several weeks.
TPSS HEAD LICE Policy
It is the policy of the School Board to exclude from the Tangipahoa Parish School System any student suspected of having symptoms of head lice until satisfactory treatment has been given. All know siblings living in the same household will be examined. After the student has been treated, a parent or guardian must accompany the student back to school to be inspected by trained school personnel to determine re-admittance. One excused day will be allowed for treatment of lice infestation; subsequent days may be deemed unexcused. If days absent are excessive, the Student Services Department representative will determine if excessive absenteeism is excused or unexcused. If two or more cases are reported by a parent or a teacher in the same classroom in a two week period, a call out will be done to those parents of that class. This is to encourage self-checks at home. If four or more cases are found within a week at a school then a school call will be done to notify parents.
