COVID-19 GUIDANCEDaily symptom screening will be completed each morning by a parent/guardian for all students participating in camp. A link will be sent via text message and email. Once submitted, you will receive an all clear message to come to camp. Students will not be permitted at camp if this daily screening is not completed. If you received a denied access to camp message, please keep all household members at home and contact the school nurse at aherbein@towerhill.org for further guidance.
Any possible exposure to COVID-19 should be reported to the school nurse, Alexis Herbein (aherbein@towerhill. org) immediately. A decision will be made on a case-by-case basis to determine exposure risk and if a quarantine period is required. Students will not be permitted at camp until they have received clearance from the school nurse.
Students experiencing possible symptoms of COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath, sudden loss of taste and/ or smell, headache, fatigue, muscle or body aches, GI upset or sore throat) will not be permitted at camp. Please keep your camper home and notify the medical team immediately. The unwell person must stay home until they receive a negative COVID-19 test or has a note from a medical provider for clearance to return to camp.
People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported, ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- Loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
-
Diarrhea
MEDICAL FORMS FOR CAMP
All campers will be assigned an account on the Magnus Health Portal where we will collect the following documents:
- Camp Policies Sign-off
- Current Physical Exam
- Vaccination Record
- Allergy and Asthma Action Plan (if necessary)
THS students do not need to upload a new form but should make sure all forms are up to date.
Visits to the camp medical staff will be recorded in Magnus, and parents can expect an email detailing each visit when the student visit is complete. The medical staff will call home for any emergencies requiring dismissal or a visit to a physician.
MASK PROTOCOL
Masking decisions will be made closer to the start of the camp when current guidance from DPH and community spread are reviewed. A communication will be shared with masking expectations at that time.
HAND HYGIENE
Hand hygiene is one of our most important tasks in order to prevent the spread of illness. Campers and staff will have access to handwashing facilities; supplies and hand sanitizer are also available in each classroom.
PHYSICAL DISTANCING
Physical distancing will be a priority for all persons on campus.
- Students and staff will make every effort to maintain the recommended distance of 3 feet or greater between individuals, including when seated at desks or standing in classrooms.
- Outdoor spaces and resources will be utilized as much as possible during the day.
Our medical team has received increased training in identifying potential COVID-19 symptoms and will make a decision on a case-by-case basis utilizing assessment skills, patient history and input from DPH as appropriate. If COVID-19 is suspected or any other symptoms that require exclusion in accordance with our Tower Hill Illness Guidelines, the parent/ guardian will be notified and the student will remain isolated until picked up for dismissal. The sick individual will be asked to remain off campus until symptom free in accordance with our Tower Hill Illness Guidelines.
When a member of the THS community receives a positive diagnosis for COVID-19, the school nurse must be notified immediately. The school nurse will work with DPH to complete contact tracing and identify those contacts that are at high risk for contracting the disease. Those that are identified as a contact will be notified immediately and given further instructions regarding symptom surveillance and quarantine. The privacy of each individual will be respected and information will only be shared that aids in the protection of public health.
DPH defines a contact as “a well person who has been exposed to a case or a case’s environment such that they had an opportunity to acquire the infection.” Precautions like social distancing and face coverings significantly reduce the chances of a person being named in contact tracing as a contact. Individual cases will be evaluated by DPH and the Tower Hill School nurse for guidance on when it is safe to return to school.
CONTACT TRACING
Contact tracing prevents further transmission of disease by confidentially identifying people who have been in close contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19. According to DPH, because of our strict masking and distancing protocol, positive individuals may not need contact tracing except in the cases where masks were off or distance could not be maintained. Contact tracing will work in tandem with efforts to increase testing, practice effective strategies to reduce transmission, and implement isolation and quarantine protocols. Contact tracing will be conducted by the school nurse in collaboration with DPH.
COMMUNICATION
The school will work concurrently with DPH on individual contact tracing and all ensuing mitigation protocols with sensitivity to privacy. It is important to note that the identification of a positive case does not mean that your student will be identified as a contact. Follow up communications will occur as necessary.
PICK-UP AND DROP-OFF PROCEDURES
In order to dismiss all children safely at each day camp’s end, it is imperative that all drivers refrain from cell phone use for talking or texting while waiting in the car line as this has proven to be a distraction and a delay.
DAY CAMP
All parents of campers will arrive and be dismissed using a carline to expedite our dismissal process. If your child’s dismissal arrangements change for the day, please send a note to your child’s camp teacher in the morning. We appreciate learning about dismissal changes upon your child’s arrival; however, if a change is necessary, please call the Day Camp Office 302-575-0550.
Please follow the State of Delaware’s regulations regarding car seats, seat belts and rear seating for children. Students must be seated in the rear of passenger vehicles and be secured in booster seats if they weigh less than 60 pounds. Children over 60 pounds must use seat belts.
In order to dismiss all children safely at each day camp’s end, it is imperative that all drivers refrain from cell phone use for talking or texting while waiting in the car line as this has proven to be a distraction and a delay.
Day camp students are expected to remain in their parents’ cars until a staff member gets the camper from the vehicle during the morning. In the afternoon, children will be escorted to their vehicles by day camp staff. The streets immediately surrounding the school are subject to heavy traffic and, as a result, are extremely dangerous. Parents are asked to abide by following the procedures listed below:
- Carline will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. in the morning and 3 p.m. in the afternoon.
- Cars may begin lining up in the horseshoe at 8:15 a.m. in the morning and 2:45 p.m. in the afternoon.
- Follow car line routes as directed.
- Students will be called by last name to your vehicle in the afternoon.
- Exit the parking lot safely upon receiving your child from camp staff.
Please be on time to pick up your child from camp or aftercare.
Any children not picked up on time at either 3 p.m. for day camp or 5:30 p.m. from aftercare will be charged $1 per minute.
ENRICHMENT CAMP/BUNDLES
All Enrichment Camps take place in the main school building. Campers should be escorted to their camp via the main school entrance on W. 17th Street. Campers enrolled in multiple programs and/or extended care will be accompanied by the camp staff during transitions.
SPORTS CAMP
Campers should be dropped off and picked up at the flag pole on W. 17th Street.
EXTENDED CARE
Parents should escort campers into the Day Camp building for Before Care and collect them from the building from After Care.
POLICIES
REGISTRATION POLICY / REFUNDS
If circumstances require cancellation of registration, then you will be charged $50 for two weeks before, and $100 for one week before.
After that or during the program, refunds will be offered for illnesses or accidents with a physician’s note, less a $50 administration fee. During the program, refunds may be pro-rated based on the length of attendance, less a $50 administrative fee. The Summer at Tower Hill Program reserves the right to cancel or modify individual programs due to enrollment or weather conditions. If Tower Hill decides a program change is necessary, the student will be placed in an alternative program or the program will provide a full refund.
PHOTO RELEASE
The photo release in the online registration states that Tower Hill School may use a camper’s name, portrait or likeness, video or artwork in connection with Summer at Tower Hill activities, in publicizing or in social media as well as future known or unknown technologies.
PROCEDURES
Tower Hill School has adopted the following procedures in caring for your child when he/she becomes sick or injured at school: In case of a life-threatening emergency, the school will call 911 and then follow the steps below. In case of other emergencies and/or need of medical or hospital care:
- The school will call the home.
- If there is no answer at home, the school will call the father’s, mother’s or guardian’s place of employment.
- If there is no answer at the place(s) of employment, the school will call the other telephone number(s) listed and the physician.
- If none of the above answer, the school will call an ambulance, if necessary, to transport the child to a local medical facility.
- Based upon the medical judgment of the attending physician, the child may be admitted to a local medical facility.
- The school will continue to call the parents, guardians or physician until one is reached. If they cannot be reached and the school authorities have followed the procedures described, parents/guardians agree to assume all expenses for moving and medically treating the camper. Parents/guardians consent to any treatment, surgery, diagnostic procedures or the administration of anesthesia that may be carried out based on the medical judgment of the attending physician.
BEHAVIOR POLICY
All students must conduct themselves in a responsible and respectful manner while attending Summer at Tower Hill. All campers in the Green Group must be potty trained before camp begins. Any camper who is involved in inappropriate behavior that raises significant concerns will be subject to immediate dismissal and forfeiture of payment.