According
to Nola.com, certain summer camps in New Orleans will be allowed to open
their doors for campers on June 15; however, these programs will look vastly
different from previous years. With the fun activities that come along with
camp, new regulations such as temperature checks, staggered hours, and constant
hand washing will now take place as well. Parents in New Orleans, although
hesitant, need to return to work, and summer camps are a main source for
childcare.
"Allowing
access to summer camps and summer school is critical so parents can return to
work and so that children can continue with their education," Dr. Courtney
Phillips, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Health, said. "We must
move forward with caution and guidance to keep each person safe."
Camp
directors within the metro area said parents received strict guidelines about
what is to be expected for summer camps that are supposed to open for at least
part of the summer. Josh Tolbert, owner of Junction Place Sportsplex in Elmwood,
is making efforts, such as separating the kids while they play certain sports,
to ensure safety for campers.
"We're
trying to do sports in a way that's extra cautious," Tolbert said.
More
precautions at St. George's Episcopal School consist of eating lunch in
classrooms, indoor spaces limited to one group at a time, groups being
forbidden to mingle with other groups, and new "head to toe" napping rules.
Along with these new regulations, campers who cannot follow these adjustments
will be asked to leave the camp.
The new
restriction rules come from the Louisiana Department of Health. "Roadmap to a Resilient
Louisiana" holds
the states reopening plan and outlines steps for childcare centers, summer
camps, and others related.
Hygiene is
also mentioned in the Roadmap and says campers and staff must wash their hands
at least every two hours, and children who are over two are told to wear cloth
masks. If children have underlying health conditions, they are asked to seek
approval from a doctor before registering for camps or schools.
Staff is
required to regularly clean facilities, and if any kid has a temperature over
100.4 degrees, they will not be allowed in. Precautions for if kids do get sick
are in place and consist of an isolation room. State guidelines state that if a
COVID-19 case is confirmed, the entire area will be sealed, and campers who
have entered that room might not be allowed back for at least two weeks.
Some New
Orleans families debate whether they should send their children to camp or not,
but others may not have the option to keep them home. Parent Nisha Ranshi said
she does not have the option to work from home anymore.
"I
would love for [my daughter] to go [to camp], but I'm still so nervous," Ranshi
said. "I just think it'll be hard to keep anything sanitary with a
toddler, especially mine, since she loves licking everything at the
moment."
Other moms
like Jamie Peacock said that even though it can be difficult balancing work and
childcare, she is deciding to keep her children home.
"Even
with limited amounts of kids, all it takes is one [infection]," said
Peacock, who works at home along with her husband and two children. "I
understand that for some families, summer camp is necessary and very much get
why these camps will be used. We are lucky in that we don't have to do
it."
