Goshen Community Schools, Re-entry Co-Curricular Guidelines

The Goshen Community School COVID 19 Task Force has worked with all stakeholders to plan for the reopening of our schools, starting with summer activities. Goshen Community Schools (GCS) has and will continue to work with local and state officials, adhering to the guidelines set forth by the Indiana Department of Education and The Elkhart County Health Department. The safety and security of students and staff are the heart of this plan. This plan has been approved by the Elkhart County Health Department.

The following guidelines were used in the creation of this plan:

• The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS)
• The Center for Disease Control, “Opening Up America Again”
• The State of Indiana, “Back on Track”
• The Indiana Department of Education, “IN-CLASS”

Parents:

The safety of our students starts with your help. Please read through these guidelines and help your child to abide by the guidelines. Help your child self-screen daily for COVID 19 symptoms.

COVID Symptoms for Screening

• Cough • Loss of taste or smell • Sore throat                     • Headache
• Diarrhea • Chills  • Muscle pain                  • Repeated shaking with chills
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Known close contact with a person who is a lab confirmed to have COVID-19
• Feeling feverish or a measured temperature greater than or equal to 100.3 degrees Fahrenheit

Do not send your child to a practice or a rehearsal if they are experiencing any of these symptoms.

Training:

• Mandatory training for all summer co-curricular staff will take place the week of June 29.
• Meetings for parents of student athletes will be offered the week of June 29 and July 6^th. A meeting for band parents will be offered on July 9^th in the football stadium. Health professionals will be present at the meetings to answer questions and provide training. All parents are strongly encouraged to attend.
• Health professionals will visit each group’s practices/rehearsals the week of July 6 to train students and answer questions.

Continue to Practice Good Hygiene:

• Wash your hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizer, especially after touching frequently used items or surfaces.
• Avoid touching your face.
• Sneeze or cough into a tissue, or the inside of your elbow.
• Disinfect frequently used items and surfaces as much as possible.
• Strongly consider using face coverings while in public, and particularly when riding in buses, SPVs, or personal vehicles with other students and/or parents.
• Students and staff should maintain at least six feet of distance from all sides and wear cloth masks when not actively practicing.

Eligibility Requirements for All Activities – must be submitted prior to participation:

ALL PARTCIPANTS

Self-Health Assessment Agreement must be completed prior to participation in all co-curricular activities

COVID Symptoms for Screening:

• Cough • Loss of taste or smell • Sore throat               • Headache
• Diarrhea • Chills • Muscle pain
• Repeated shaking with chills
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Known close contact with a person who is lab-confirmed to have COVID-19
• Feeling feverish or having a measured temperature greater than or equal to 100.3 degrees Fahrenheit

Do not come to a practice or a rehearsal if you are experiencing any of these symptoms.

Music Participants:

All forms can be found at www.goshenbands.org.  Forms can be emailed to tcox@goshenschools.org or brought to the parent meeting or first rehearsal.

Athletes are required to have completed:

• An IHSAA pre-participation physical OR a Waiver with permission to use the 2019-20 exam from the 2020-21 school year.
• Students who do not have a 2019-20 school year pre-participation physical exam MUST have a new pre-participation physical exam dated after 4/1/20.
• Students who answer “Yes” to any of the 7 questions on the Health History Questionnaire and Consent & Release Certificate, MUST have a new pre-participation exam dated after 4/1/20.
• A code of conduct from with emergency contact and insurance information
• Concussion/Cardiac Awareness information acknowledgement form
• All forms for athletics can be found under the Athletic Forms tab at goshenredhawks.org
• During summer, the Athletic Office is open daily from 9 AM – 4 PM Mondays – Thursday
• Forms can be dropped off in athletics by entering door M or by emailing Mrs. Schrock at jschrock@goshenschools.org

Requirements for All Activities:

• Students and staff MUST bring their own water bottles, clearly marked with their names.
• Students and staff MUST NOT share personal equipment.
• Students and staff MUST bring cloth masks to wear when not participating in vigorous activity.
• Only essential student athletes, student participants, coaches, medical staff, supervisors, directors, and security should be in attendance until August 15.

General information and Guidelines for All Activities:

• Attendance is voluntary.

• Hand washing and sanitizing
  • All coaches/directors and students will wash hands or use hand sanitizer upon arrival on campus.
  • For indoor activities, all individuals should wash their hands for a minimum of 20 seconds with warm water and soap before touching any surfaces or participating in workouts.
  • Hand sanitizer should be used when moving from place to place.
• GCS will provide hand sanitizer for both indoor and outdoor GCS facilities.
• All coaches/directors and students will be encouraged to frequently utilize hand sanitizer.
• Handwashing signs will be displayed at all facilities.
• While the school will have hand sanitizing stations, students and staff are encouraged to bring pocket size hand sanitizer for themselves.
• Students and staff should wear freshly washed clothes to activities and should wash clothes and shower when they return home. No sleeveless shirts or cut-off garments should be worn to practices or activities. Locker rooms, the training room, and laundry services will not be available through Aug. 3.
• There should be no shared towels, clothing, or shoes between students or staff.
• Individual clothing/towels should be taken home and washed and cleaned after every workout.
• Each student is limited to 15 hours/week on campus for the weeks of July 6 and July 13 for all co-curricular and extracurricular activities. The 15 hours/week may be comprised of:
  • 2 activity-specific practices/rehearsals on non-consecutive days with a maximum of 3 hours/session.
  • Conditioning programs may be offered 4 times/week for 2 hours/session.
  • Each sport/activity must register their activity days in the office of the Athletic Director/Principal at least 10 days in advance.
  • Indoor practices and rehearsals may be conducted up to a maximum of 50% these first 2 weeks.
  • Activity schedules are subject to change. Please see the most up to-date practice/rehearsal schedule from your director/coach.
• There are no Sunday activities to be offered.
• Records shall be kept of students’ hours the weeks of July 6 and July 13 and any absences that are COVID related will be noted throughout the fall season. Staff will check with students about their symptoms for COVID prior to each activity.
  • COVID Symptoms for Self-Screening
  • Cough • Loss of taste or smell • Sore throat
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing • Diarrhea
  • Chills • Repeated shaking with chills
  • Muscle pain • Headache
  • Known close contact with a person who is lab-confirmed to have COVID-19
  • Feeling feverish or having a measured temperature greater than or equal to 100.3 degrees
• During the summer, a student with symptoms will be isolated and the GCS Health Services Director, Mrs. Susan Stiffney will be notified to attend to the student. If Mrs. Stiffney is unavailable, the coach/director will notify the parent and the student will be sent home.  When school starts, GHS Nurse Wendy Swallow will be the first point of contact during the school day and the GHS athletic trainers will be first point of contact for after school. 
• Students will SELF pre-screen daily for COVID symptoms that they or others living in their house may experience. Self-screening needs to be done daily! Students will notify their coach if they have symptoms or if a family member has symptoms.
• No clothing or towels may be shared with other students or staff.
• Indoor practices and rehearsals may be conducted up to a maximum of 50% room capacity until August 3^rd.
• Consideration should be given to vulnerable individuals and it is encouraged for those individuals to seek medical guidance regarding his/her individual level of participation.

Limitations on Gatherings:

• GCS will follow local guidelines provided by Governor Holcomb’s directive in phase 4 (250 persons) and in phase 5 (unlimited number). Understanding that the phase approval could change at any time, GCS will monitor the recommendations of the state, and will make phase changes accordingly.
• See the Phase I -III guidelines for attendance at events.

Facilities Cleaning:

• Adequate cleaning schedules should be created and implemented for all athletic facilities to mitigate any communicable diseases.
• GCS directors/coaches will be provided with spray bottles containing disinfectant for the weight room and sports/music equipment.
• Weight room equipment will be wiped down after each individual use
• Music department equipment, weight room equipment, and sports equipment will be sanitized at the end of each session.
• GCS custodial staff will conduct their normal cleaning schedule prior to the start of the next day.
• Any equipment such as weight benches, athletic pads, etc. which have holes in them with exposed foam should be covered, so that they may be adequately disinfected.

Hydration:

• All students MUST bring their own water bottle to practices/rehearsals which is clearly marked with his/her name, and water bottles must not be shared.
• Out of an abundance of caution, GCS will not be utilizing hydration stations until further notice. Therefore, it is essential that students bring their own adequate supply of water to practices/rehearsals.

Summer Camps:

• GCS head coaches may run youth summer camps starting the week of 7/20. All guidelines will be followed as written in this plan.

Transportation to events:

• GCS will not provide school transportation in the month of July.
• GCS will not travel to or host competitions as a school in the month of July.
• All students must wear a mask while riding on team buses.
• All students will have assigned seats on all athletic and co-curricular event trips.

Social distancing during Contests/Events/Activities:

• GCS will follow the directives of the local health department as they pertain to social distancing/contests/events/activities whenever contests can resume (at this point, scheduled for August 15^th).

Phase I: July 6-19

• Student athletes will be limited to 15 hours per week at school
• Individual student athletes are limited to 15 total hours of school contact activity per calendar week.
• There will be no practices on Sundays
• No sport/co-curricular will have more than two activity days per calendar week.
• All coaches/leaders will register their activity days in the office of the Athletic Director at least 10 days in advance.
• Calendars will be given to students and parents
• Activity days will not occur on consecutive calendar days.
• Activity days are limited to three hours per day.
• Conditioning is limited to four days per week. Conditioning sessions may be held multiple times each day, each session limited to two hours. Student athletes may attend only one conditioning session per day.
• ALL SUMMER ACTIVITIES ARE VOLUNTARY
• All State and local guidelines for group limitations will be followed.
• Any student who prefers to wear a face covering for activities will be allowed, if doing so will not cause a health risk.
• Students, when not engaging in vigorous activity and when practical, will wear face coverings.
• Non-students, including coaches, medical-related staff, directors, security staff, supervisors, etc. will always wear face coverings unless under rigorous activity or poses a health risk.
• Only essential student athletes, student participants, coaches, medical staff, related supervisors, directors, and security will be in attendance.
• Consideration will be given to vulnerable individuals and it is encouraged for those individuals to seek medical guidance regarding his/her individual level of participation.
• Locker rooms will not be utilized. Students will report to their activity in proper gear and immediately return home to shower at the conclusion.
• Restrooms will remain available for students and staff, however social distancing will be required
• Shared hydration stations (water trough, water fountains, water hose, etc.) will not be utilized except for filling individual, labeled water bottles.
• No formal competition will take place.

Phase II: July 20 – August 15

• All students and staff will wear a face covering for activities, if doing so will not cause a health risk.
• Students, when not engaging in vigorous activity and when practical, will wear face coverings.
• Non-students, including coaches, medical-related staff, directors, security staff, supervisors, etc. will always wear face coverings unless under rigorous activity or poses a health risk.
• Only essential student athletes, student participants, coaches, medical staff, related supervisors, directors, and security will be in attendance.
• Consideration will be given to vulnerable individuals and it is encouraged for those individuals to seek medical guidance regarding his/her individual level of participation.
• All students, staff and parents will be trained and screened for signs/symptoms of COVID-19 prior to participating in workouts, rehearsals, or practices.
• Any person with COVID-19-related symptoms will not be allowed to take part in workouts, rehearsals, or practices and should contact his or her primary care provider or other appropriate healthcare professional
• Locker rooms may be used at 50% capacity.
• Appropriate clothing/shoes will be worn at all times to minimize transmission.
• There will be no sharing of clothing, shoes, towels, or water bottles.
• All shared equipment will be cleaned prior to use and immediately following usage.
• Students will be expected to shower at school or at home and wash workout clothing immediately upon returning to their home. If a student does not have a laundered uniform, he/she may not be allowed to participate in practice or competition.
• If schools launder student gear or uniforms, PPE must be available for the person in charge of laundering.
• Free weight exercises requiring a spotter can be conducted. Safety measures in all forms must be strictly enforced in the weight room.
• Celebratory and sportsmanship acts that involve contact should be prohibited.
• Shared hydration stations (water trough, water fountains, water hose, etc.) should not be utilized except for filling individual, labeled water bottles.
• No formal competition is allowed with the exception of girls golf.

Phase III: August 15

• All students and staff will wear a face covering for activities should be allowed, if doing so will not cause a health risk.
• Students, when not engaging in vigorous activity and when practical, will wear face coverings.
• Non-students, including coaches, medical-related staff, directors, security staff, supervisors, etc. will always wear face coverings unless under rigorous activity or poses a health risk.
• Consideration will be given to vulnerable individuals and it is encouraged for those individuals to seek medical guidance regarding his/her individual level of participation.
• All students and staff will be trained and screened for signs/symptoms of COVID-19 prior to participating in workouts, rehearsals, or practices.
• Locker rooms and meeting rooms may be used at 50% capacity.
• Hospitality rooms for officials will not include shared food service and will allow space for social distancing. Individual waters and pre-packaged snacks may be made available.
• Appropriate clothing/shoes will be worn at all times to minimize transmission.
• No sharing of clothing, shoes, towels, or water bottles.
• Contact will be limited to only contact necessary to compete as defined by IHSAA. Modified sportsmanship practices should be observed.
• All shared equipment will be cleaned prior to use and immediately following usage.
• Students must shower at school or at home and wash workout clothing immediately upon returning to their home. If a student does not have a laundered uniform, he/she may not be allowed to participate in practice or competition.
• Shared hydration stations (water trough, water fountains, water hose, etc.) will not be utilized except for filling individual, labeled water bottles.
• Concessions may be sold if food handlers and cashiers use appropriate PPE and only prepared, prepackaged food is available.