The dates have been set for the return of student athletics and summer camps within Greenville County Schools.
Both will adhere to strict health and safety protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Athletics
Though the South Carolina High School League permitted students athletics to resume on June 8 in a phased process (teams must spend three to four weeks at Phase I before proceeding to Phase II), Greenville County Schools has decided to begin Phase I of summer workouts on Monday, June 15 in order to provide time to develop our internal guidelines and processes and to work with our principals and athletic directors to ensure preparedness.
The first three days will be devoted to orientation, ensuring that every student athlete and their parents are fully compliant with the new requirements before starting workouts, while allowing the clock to start on Phase I of the process. Before participating, students and parents/guardians will be required to submit a signed COVID-19 waiver in addition to the usual paperwork.
The enhanced safety requirements for Phase I include:
Daily health screening questionnaire and temperature check of athletes, coaches and staff
Group size limit of 10, including coaches and other staff, in any single indoor or outdoor facility at a time
Starting and ending times for workouts staggered among multiple sports teams
Minimum physical distance of 6 feet maintained between participants at all times, and a minimum distance of 12 feet between each person when using weight rooms
Face coverings required for coaches and staff members at all times while on-site
Face coverings required for student-athletes unless actively participating in athletic activity during which wearing such a covering would be inhibitory
Weight rooms, restrooms and other multi-use facilities that include high-touch surfaces will be sanitized frequently during each event, and shared equipment will be cleaned and disinfected in-between each user
Use of locker rooms and offices are prohibited, and bathroom access will be limited to every other stall
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers and/or adequate hand-washing facilities will be provided for all participants, and each participant must provide a personal water bottle
Schools and coaches will useJune 15-17to conduct scheduled walk-throughs with students, parents, and staff to orient the students and parents to the safety precautions, demonstrate how cleaning will take place during and after workouts, and allow for questions or concerns to be brought forward. Small numbers of demonstrations of a student using the equipment followed by the cleaning of it can be done during this time frame as an educational tool for students and practice for staff. Otherwise, no workouts will take place during this three-day period.School personnel will also use this time to ensure all safety measures are appropriately planned for and staffed.
On Thursday, June 18, schools will operate their first true workout day, following all guidelines and with any adjustments to their plan based on the June 15-17 walkthroughs. District staff will make daily on-site visits to schools during the first week to assist and monitor the staggered implementation plan and to offer support where needed. While we are hopeful that our careful preparations and training will result in a smooth implementation, we are prepared to pause the process at any point if deemed necessary.
A review of plans for the second week (June 22-26) will be made at the end of the first week based on updated local COVID-19 numbers as well as a review of implementation of processes and procedures.