Safety

The Safety of Your Child is our Top Priority

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We require campers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.  Got another COVID shot? Re-upload your vaccine card so our files are accurate.

  • Click this link to access your document center.
  • Upload a copy or a photo of your child’s COVID-19 vaccination card.
    • Please note: this entire process is associated with the account used to register for camp. Log into your existing account and do not create a new account in our system to fill out your health info

Depending on covid levels, and current CDC and VDH guidelines, we may require testing prior to the beginning of camp.

SAFE START

We require campers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Boosters are not required but recommended; get booster information here. Got another COVID shot? Re-upload your vaccine card so our files are accurate.

  • Click this link to access your document center.
  • Upload a copy or a photo of your child’s COVID-19 vaccination card.
    • Please note: this entire process is associated with the account used to register for camp. Log into your existing account and do not create a new account in our system to fill out your health info.

We require all students get a COVID test before arrival and submit the results to the office (email campdirector@travelingplayers.org). The test you take will depend on if you have had COVID in the past 90 days.

  • Tested positive for COVID in the last 90 days?
    • Please take a rapid (antigen) test the day before you arrive. You can order free rapid tests here.
  • Didn’t test positive for COVID in the last 90 days?
    • Please take a PCR (antibody) test within 72 hours of arrival. You can find PCR testing in your area by going to these websites and typing in your zip code. For Virginia; for Maryland; for DC.
  • Negative?
    • Email a picture/forward the result to campdirector@travelingplayers.org — you’re all set and ready to come to camp!
  • Positive?
    • Still please send your results to the office. You will not be able to attend camp this session. If there is space available in a later session, we’d love you to join then.

We cannot let you into camp without proof of fully vaccinated status and proof of a negative COVID test. Please send them to us, and thank you!

Vaccination

COVID vaccinations are mandatory for staff and students, barring medical exemptions written by physicians. Our community will be 99%+ vaccinated all summer long.

Testing

Universal testing is required prior to arrival. Antigen testing will be implemented as needed throughout the summer, if any COVID-like symptoms arise in our community.

Ventilation

Almost all camp activities (including rehearsing and eating) take place outdoors. Indoor spaces are fully ventilated with filtered AC and windows.

Trained Staff

All our staff receive American Red Cross First Aid and EpiPen training.

Other Safety Measures

COVID safety is very important, but there are plenty of other ways we’ll be ensuring the safety of our students at camp this summer:

Traveling Players maintains a 1:4 staff to student ratio. That means our students are more than just in our sight, but receiving personalized training and attention.  Directors are master teachers with many years of experience in both professional theatre and theatre education.  Along with their professional achievements, our faculty is trained in First Aid & CPR and Leave No Trace outdoor ethics.  Every director is supported by two assistant directors, who are working on or have received their BA, BFA or MFA in theatre.

Our Artistic Director personally interviews every member of our staff and selects them for their proven skills as educators, artists, and role models.

We do not employ CITs. All employees of Traveling Players are rigorously background checked.  All staff attend two weeks of on-site orientation.

Our staff is our biggest asset — comprised of talented artist educators who work professionally in the DC-metro area and around the world. A significant number of our staff are alums of our program, proof that the Traveling Players community remains dear to their hearts.  Read all about them on our staff page!

All our staff receive American Red Cross First Aid, CPR, and EpiPen training. Several staff are certified in Wilderness First Aid.

Our staff have a high level of physical competency. Many of them have run marathons, hiked the Appalachian Trail, or trained as certified lifeguards.

If medical services are needed, the INOVA Loudoun Hospital is located less than 30 minutes from campus.

We dedicate a full day of staff orientation to practicing how to keep our students in safe boundaries with our on-call social worker. Zena Carmel-Jessup is a Maryland Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 15 years of experience training staff and working with children and families.

Our fleet of six purple buses have an exceptional and spotless safety record. All of our buses are professionally maintained by our experienced on-call diesel mechanic. We employ a commercial driver trainer to personally train all of our drivers. All of our bus drivers are drug tested before the summer begins and randomly tested throughout the summer.  A bus counselor engages students in games (a mobile improv class!) while the driver focuses on the road. 

Electronics Policy

Cell phones, iPods, mp3 players, kindles, smart watches, fitness trackers, other Bluetooth devices, etc. are NOT allowed at camp.

Almost all sleepaway/residential camps strictly forbid cell phones and electronics, and we agree with their stance.  The reasons for this are many:

  • According to the Chicago Tribune and NPR, smartphone-mediated communication interferes with the positive educational and developmental impact of camp on children of all ages.
    • A 2014 UCLA study of sixth graders at an outdoor camp found that in just 5 days without a screen, students were better able to pick up on nonverbal emotional cues.
  • The rough-and-tumble environment of summer camp is hard on delicate and expensive electronics, which are particularly vulnerable to loss and breakage.
  • Unplugged doesn’t mean disconnected. You can send you camper letters & care packages (we recommend limiting yourself to 1 care package in a 3 week stay, but you can send letters everyday if you’d like!)
    • <Camper’s Name>
      Traveling Players
      c/o Freedom Center
      13922 Freedom Center Lane
      Leesburg, VA 20176
  • You can also email your camper!
  • Some personal electronics (for instance, a single-function white noise generator for kids with sleep disorders) may be acceptable for use at camp. Please contact the office to check in with us before camp.
  • Campers with standing therapy appointments will, of course, be able to attend those. We will provide phones to campers for them to use. Please email campdirector@travelingplayers.org with the appointment time and doctor’s phone number. 
  • Campers who are starting college this year will have access to their phones for the purposes of registering for classes, filling out their paperwork, et cetera.
  • Students doing Shakespeare Troupe can bring their phone after the mid-simmer vacation and will have access to it while on tour. 
  • It’s very important that parents do not rely on their children’s cell phones as being their contact number should something come up.  If something comes up during camp  (family emergency on your end, camper not feeling well on our end), please call the Camp Office at 703-987-1712 (or expect a call from the camp office).  The camp director will make sure your child, as well as his/her staff members, are up to date with anything that’s going on.  By keeping us in the loop, we are better able to care for your child.

We really appreciate your compliance with this policy, and hope your camper can “disconnect to reconnect”!

More Info: Summer 2023
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