The arithmetic behind Gov. Ned Lamont's new "Screen and Stay" initiative is elementary: Screening plus masks plus vaccination availability for younger students equals fewer missed school days plus more learning.

Taking into account progress against COVID-19 on several fronts, the governor last week announced his new strategy to limit unnecessary quarantining after exposure at school. Students and staff who are not fully vaccinated won't have to quarantine if they are in close contact with someone who tests positive for the virus, provided they were wearing masks, don't have symptoms and the contact happened during the school day. 

Screen and Stay extends to students who are not fully vaccinated the same rules for dealing with close contact exposure that apply to vaccinated students. Previously, those who weren't fully vaccinated had to quarantine for 10 days, or seven days if they had a negative COVID-19 test from the fifth day or later. That's up to two weeks of missed school for each exposure.

The fact that vaccines are now available to children 5-11 years old and many parents are getting their young children the shots lowers the overall risk of exposure and infection to all, including the unvaccinated. This makes Screen and Stay feasible as a way to eliminate the open-and-close cycles of the last school year.

The state's initiative became available to schools immediately after the governor announced it. Local school officials are looking at Screen and Stay, with some reaching out to public health officials for guidance on taking advantage of the option. Superintendents of schools in several towns told The Day they were doing their due diligence and would be making decisions soon.

The policy marks a new phase in fighting the effects of COVID-19 — one with a wider range of strategies to potentially outflank the spread of infection. Masks, social distancing, testing and quarantining all play roles and will still be used. Vaccines, from the moment they began getting into arms, have made the greatest strides of all. But until last week vaccination excluded the entire population under 12 years old. Since then many school-age children have begun receiving the Pfizer vaccine. 

If it works out as expected through the academic year, schools should regain the continuity in school attendance that was missing from March 2020 through most of the year and beyond. In-school learning is vital because the pandemic closures delayed student progress and set many children back socially and emotionally as well. Educators say the results of remote learning showed beyond a doubt that there is no substitute for in-person classes. Organizations representing school boards, administrators, teachers and other professional groups have applauded the announcement of Screen and Stay. 

There may be even more reason to put reliance on screening and staying in the months ahead, as new antiviral treatments become available and fulfill their promise of making Covid illness less severe.

State Rep. Greg Howard, R-Stonington, who recently wrote to the commissioners of public health and education asking for a "Test and Stay" policy, said after Lamont's announcement that he was glad the departments were cooperating with one another, even though the new rules are not quite what he sought. Health department commissioner Manisha Juthani said there were significant obstacles to Test and Stay, which is used in Massachusetts. She cited a limited number of the rapid tests that would be needed and the time it would take to get schools certified for laboratory testing.

Whether or not Howard's suggestion speeded up the administration's response, it was a good one, and so is the alternative now approved, Screen and Stay. We urge local schools to seriously consider implementing the new option.

It's worth noting that some private and public schools managed to stay open for most of the pandemic even before vaccines became available for adults. They did so through careful management of interactions. The same approach, even more effective now because of increased numbers of vaccinated adults and children, must be a key part of the new initiative and, we hope, the new normal.

Editors note: This corrects the dates of when schools were closed from an earlier version.

The Day editorial board meets with political, business and community leaders to formulate editorial viewpoints. It is composed of President and Publisher Timothy Dwyer, Executive Editor Izaskun E. Larraneta, Owen Poole, copy editor, and Lisa McGinley, retired deputy managing editor. The board operates independently from The Day newsroom.