Dear GMS Families,
As a family currently registered for our All-Inclusive Summer Camp, we wanted to reach out with an update.
This week, Governor Roy Cooper modified North Carolina’s Stay At Home Executive Order, transitioning the state to Phase 1 of slowly easing COVID-19 restrictions.
Executive Order 138 went into effect yesterday, May 8 at 5 p.m. Among other things, the order says that daytime summer camps might be able to open, but "only if they are in full compliance with the Interim Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Guidance for Day Camp or Program Settings Serving Children and Teens." The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) has issued this guidance, and we are actively reviewing it to understand whether operating in full compliance is feasible at this time.
If you like, you may review the full guidance from NCDHHS
here. The level of detail with which daytime summer camps are expected to comply is significant, from modified drop-off and pick-up procedures; daily screenings of staff and campers; wearing of masks during camp; keeping children separated by six feet; sending campers and staff home immediately and for longer periods of time for any suspected illness, symptoms, or exposure to illness symptoms; limited movement to different rooms; a need for additional staff; and restrictions on non-socially-distanced sports, large group gatherings, and field trips.
And while these levels of detail with which camps are expected to comply are significant, we also know that our families' needs for childcare and summer camp are also significant. We know many of our families are returning to in-person work and need support for their children.
This situation is frustrating to all of us. Here at school, we want nothing more than to have all the children and faculty back on campus. And, we know these expectations from the state are a new reality, at least for a while, that we all have to navigate.
This coming week we will continue important discussions with our task force of administrators, our administrative team, our medical advisors, heads of school from other local independent schools, and our board of trustees. We will all continue to assess whether we can safely and reasonably comply with the guidance, in order to start our camp in June or to instead aim for a delayed start in July. Safety will be our driving factor, and we will continue to balance the needs of our families, our employees, and the overall health of the community. As previously shared, we will let you know by Friday, May 15 if we will open Summer Camp as scheduled. For now, we wanted to give you a sense of what we are working on.
Please do not hesitate to
reach out to me with any questions or thoughts. Thank you for continuing to partner with Greensboro Montessori School.
