WASHINGTON (WDVM) — Mayor Bowser announced on Wednesday that all students and staff will need to provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test before returning to school on Jan. 5.

Families must upload negative test results to D.C. Public Schools’s (DCPS) website by 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 4.

A release from DCPS told families to

• Pick up an iHealth rapid antigen test from a DCPS school or a Test Yourself Express pickup site. Tests will be available at every DCPS school on Monday, January 3 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Tuesday, January 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Families can pick up a test at any DCPS school. 
• Test your child on Tuesday, January 4. Tests administered before January 4 will not be accepted.
• Upload results by 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 4. 

The release said that even in the case of a negative test, parents should still be wary. “If their child is showing any symptoms OR if they are required to quarantine because they are unvaccinated and have been identified as a close contact to an individual who tested positive for COVID-19, families should keep the student at home, regardless of their test result,” the release said.