Re- Opening guidelines and procedures for our students and families

08/30/21

Hello,

 

As we look forward to our fall classes resuming September 7th, we wanted to share our updated COVID19 Policies. The well-being of our students and families is a top priority! Please know that we are here
to address any concerns or issues and are happy to hear from you on additional ways we can keep our
community healthy!

 

We would like to reassure you that we are adhering to the guidelines set forth for dance studios as the
health and wellbeing of our students, their families, and our staff are our top priority. We will continue
to monitor and implement the local, state, and federal recommendations as they’re announced.

 

We take pride in our facility and how it operates and would like to highlight the policies we have in place
at the studio to help our dance families stay healthy.

 

Prevention Steps in the Studio:
● Sanitizer: We have sanitizer in each studio, as well as at the front desk and we encourage you to
utilize it frequently.
● Handwashing: We encourage frequent handwashing (for at least 20 seconds before rinsing).
● Discouraging close contact: We have adjusted certain aspects of our classes to ensure dancers
are not in too close of proximity as much as possible but cannot always guarantee. We will not
be giving hugs or hi-fives and are asking dancers to skip those as well.
● Leaving doors and windows open for fresh air as long as we can weather permitting
● Surface Cleaning: We will be wiping down frequently touched surfaces and equipment.Deep
Cleaning: Every Evening
● Sneezes and Coughs: We are encouraging dancers to cough and sneeze into their arms, not in
their hands.
● Staff: Only staff feeling well (without symptoms) will be in the studio and will be masked. Our
staff comes into contact with many students and families and are at the studio for extended
periods of time. Staff will also sanitize between encounters to reduce the spread of germs.
● Parents: We will be closing our lobby and waiting areas for the time being. A staff member will
greet you in the lobby and ensure that your dancer gets to class safely and dancers will be
picked up in the lobby.
● We are holding off on in person parent viewing at this time and are working toward a Zoom
solution. We understand how important it is to see how much fun your dancer is having and
that they are learning.
● We will also keep Zoom an option for our dancers that may need to stay home if not
feeling well, may need to quarantine, or may not be ready to come back into the studio in person yet. Please let us know if you prefer to start the year on Zoom so
we can get links to you. We really want to provide options for every dancer so they
can get the many benefits that come from being a part of a dance class.

 

How you can help:
● Dancers and family members are encouraged to participate in person wearing masks (K thru 6
and unvaccinated adults and teens.).
● Don’t bring toys from home.
● Don’t send your child to the studio sick or if a family member is sick.
○ Children missing a class due to illness will be granted a make-up session.
● Don’t break any formal quarantine/government restrictions.
● Encourage your child to cough and sneeze into their arm, not in their hand.
● Alert us if your child does have COVID-19 and have been to the studio within the last 14 days so
we can contact their peers.

 

As COVID-19 continues to be part of our daily conversations, we want to assure you that we will always
put health first. This fall we are encouraging students and families to wear masks but will not be
requiring it at this moment. Our health department has classified our studio in the gym category and is
not mandating face coverings as they are for schools. The main reason is the amount of hours per day all
week that students are in close contact in a school setting, at a dance class we have fewer students per
class sq. ft. and are able to social distance our students.

 

Our mission at Academy of Dance Arts is to create a community where our families feel cared for, and
included. We understand that masking is an issue many feel strongly about, we ask that you please
practice kindness and patience. We are all in this together.

 

In the coming days and weeks, we will continue to monitor the situation working with local
pediatricians, our health department and COVID experts in our area and pass along any pertinent
information we gather.

 

We firmly believe with the efforts of our staff and families we can keep everyone healthy. We truly
appreciate your trust and understanding.

 

All my best
Ms. Emily
Director

Academy of Dance Arts & Apparel
536 Romence Rd Ste 109
Portage, MI 49024
(269)329-2002