Compass 2021-22 COVID-19 Plan

Director’s Note: Compass had a successful 2020-21 and 2021-22 school year with no reported cases of COVID being contracted in our classes, clubs, or activities. Throughout both years, Compass families acted carefully and erred on the side caution in their attendance and participation in classes through conscientious decisions such as keeping children at home at the slightest sign of sniffles or sore throats and voluntarily skipping a week of classes if they had knowingly traveled to an area with high rate of infection. Families’ care demonstrated that they were diligent about wanting to keep Compass open and safe. Following is Compass’s 2021-22 COVID Plan which consists of our 5 P’s: Program, Protocols, Precautions, and Personal Protection. This plan is a dynamic document that will be updated as new information and studies become available.

PROGRAM

• Class Size
  The maximum size of most classes is 10-12 students with some classes that will have just 6-8 students. (The average Compass class enrollment has been 9 since the program’s inception in 2012.)
• Dedicated Space
  Compass’s facilities are in a commercial building, under a full-time lease. The facilities have complete oversight and management by Compass, including Compass-directed cleaning. This allows us to have more control over sanitation measures and to prevent additional, unknown people and outside groups from passing through our space.
• Building Circulation
  Compass’s facilities are based on an open concept plan with perimeter classrooms and large, open common spaces instead of hallways. This prevents bottlenecks and crowding that comes with narrow passageways. Students have ample space to gather near their classrooms without crowding exiting students.
• Fewer Classes, Five Days Per Week
  Fewer classes at any one time, limited class size, classrooms located in two suites, and classes spread out over 5 days means that Compass has smaller student cohorts and overall smaller gatherings than we have had in the past. In the era of COVID, the less-populous and spread-out attendance will naturally limit large group congregation which is one strategy and preventing virus transmission.
• Limited Parent/Guest Waiting Areas
  Compass has some Commons spaces for waiting parents and siblings. When those spaces are full, waiting parents and siblings will be encouraged to explore the many nearby restaurants, shops, parks, library, rec center, and playgrounds. Priority use of the Commons is given to the parents of 5-7 year-olds who must remain on the property. Compass may have to establish a one-person waiting per student rule. As much as we like to visit with the families of our students, we may have manage the number of waiting parents, siblings, and guests in the facility.
• Room Assignments
  Final classroom assignments will be adjusted before the start of classes based on final enrollment to allow the most space per student.
• Online Classes
  For Fall 2021, Compass is offering 7 online classes which will be taught in a synchronous (live), virtual classroom. Compass classes have always been hands-on, interactive, engaging, and experiential, and classes for K-8 in particular, are designed to be face-to-face. In the event of a community mandate to close, some of our interactive classes would be able to transition to a temporary online format, and some would not. In that unlikely event, Compass, in conjunction with instructors, would decide class-by-class whether to move online for a period of time, to delay the start or continuation of the class, or cancel the class in its entirety. If a class is held in-person, Compass will not offer a concurrent, online option for that class. (i.e., Compass will not offer an option for live streaming, videotaping, or recording a class that is being held in person.)

PROTOCOLS

• HVAC Upgrades
  During the summer of 2021, both of Compass’s suites underwent significant upgrades to the HVAC systems, including upsizing service and air circulation to all spaces and increasing the amount of outside air that is cycled throughout the building.
• Supplemental HEPA Air Filtration/Sanitizing
  To supplement the professionally maintained commercial HVAC system, all classrooms and commons areas are served by separate, plug-in HEPA air filters/ UV-C combo units to further filter, circulate, and sanitize the air. HEPA air filters are placed to serve every 300 SF, so larger spaces have more than one. Filters are replaced on a regular basis. Please see the CDC article linked below which discusses the efficacy of HEPA filtration, particularly when combined with masks on unvaccinated individuals.
• Cleaning/Sanitizing
  Classrooms: Each teacher is provided disinfectant wipes and is asked to wipe table tops with before and between each class, before the next group of students has entered. Common Area Surfaces: Compass staff wipes restroom vanities and tabletops in Common Areas throughout the day with disinfectant wipes. Washable Surfaces: Most of Compass’s classrooms and commons are finished with resilient tile flooring which can be cleaned and sanitized more deeply than carpeted floors. The limited amount of carpet is shampooed on a regular basis. Furniture surfaces have been selected to be wipeable instead of upholstered. Janitorial Services: Compass has professional, paid, daily janitorial services.

PRECAUTIONS

• Sick Policy
  The Compass sick policy states, “Students, siblings, or parents/guardians should not come to Compass classes, activities, or events if they have had any signs of contagious or communicable illness such as a vomiting, diarrhea, fever, persistent cough, sore throat or runny nose within the last 48 hours. A student who becomes ill in class or has a persistent cough will be asked to leave class, put on a disposable face mask (supplied by Compass), and be picked up.”
• Parking Lot Sign-In/Daily Screening
  Parents of students ages 8+ can elect to drop their children off in the designated drop-off zone and check their child(ren) in via their phone. This eliminates the need for parents to park, walk in, and sign in, only to leave again (reducing the number of extra people coming/going). Compass’s student check-in system includes some simple daily screening questions about COVID exposure, fevers, coughs, diarrhea, etc.
• COVID Exposure
  Students, siblings, parents/guardians, or instructors who have been exposed to someone with confirmed or suspected COVID-19 are asked to self-isolate per CDC guidelines. Any student, family member, instructor, staff member, or guest who tests positive for COVID-19, with or without symptoms, are asked to advise Compass so others in classes can be notified of a potential exposure.
• Travel
  Compass families, teachers, or staff who have travelled to an area with high rate of COVID infection, participated in a large group event (concert, rally, etc.), or attended a gathering with many individuals whose vaccination status is unknown, are asked to voluntarily “skip a week” to make sure that they were not inadvertently exposed to COVID.
• Parental Reminders
  Parents will be our partners in ensuring that children are reminded about refraining from touching, hugging, sharing snacks/drinks, and respecting personal space/boundaries with other students while at Compass. In addition, parents are expected to remind students about thorough hand-washing, the correct way to cover coughs/sneezes, and not to touch their mouths and faces.

PERSONAL PROTECTION

• Face Masks- UPDATED
  Effective January 10, 2022: In response to the recent uptick in cases of COVID-19 attributable to the more contagious Omicron variant, Compass shall require that all individuals (students, siblings, parents/guardians, visitors, teachers, staff) ages 3+ wear masks regardless of vaccination status and/or immunity from prior infection. This shall remain in effect until February 4, 2022.

  Parents are responsible for ensuring that their child(ren)’s masks are properly fitted, clean, dry, have appropriate air flow, and that children can put their masks on and take off on their own, know to wash their hands before touching/adjusting their masks, and can participate in class without playing with or adjusting their masks. Parents are encouraged to review current guidelines and studies on mask usage, some of which suggest that homemade and novelty fabric masks are less effective than disposable, 3-layer surgical-style masks. Even when mask recommendations are eased for various groups and different activities, Compass will continue to be a supportive and inclusive environment for anyone who wishes to continue wearing face coverings.

  Clarifications/Exceptions:

  1. Eating/Drinking: Individuals may remove their masks if they are eating/drinking in the Commons areas.

  2. Nature Quest Classes: Masks are not required in the outdoor Nature Quest classes, but students are welcome to wear masks if their families prefer.

  3. Physical Fitness Classes: Students may remove masks during vigorous cadio exercise in fitness-based classes (Krav Maga, FUNctional Fitness, or Fencing), if permitted by the instructor and student’s family. Students are asked to leave masks on during class instruction, stretching, and low-impact activites.

  4. ASL Classes: Students in the American Sign Language classes are asked to purchase a mask with clear insert panel that are sold (on Amazon, for example) for communicating with the Deaf and hard of hearing.

  When mask-wearing guidelines are eased, the following additional exceptions/clarifications shall apply:

  5. Individual teachers who have underlying health issues or comorbidities, regardless of vaccination status, may require all students and visitors in their classes to wear masks. Employment rules protect teachers from having to disclose their medical information, so if a teacher notifies families that masks are required in his/her class, all students will be required to wear masks, regardless of the students’ vaccination status or medical exemptions. An individual teacher’s need for students to wear masks will supercede any of the other conditions under which a student may be unmasked.

  6. Cooking/Baking Classes: Because of the nature of collaborative cooking/baking and sampling of the day’s recipes, all students or visitors in cooking/baking classes will be required to wear masks, regardless of vaccination status, in addition to all other sanitation and hygiene measures specified for these classes.

  7. Medical Exemption: Individuals who have medical conditions that prevent them from wearing a mask are asked to provide a doctor’s note confirming they are unable to wear a mask. This documentation does not need to disclose the medical reason behind the exemption. If a mask-exempt student is enrolled in a class requiring a mask (per exceptions 1 or 2 above), the student must wear a mask or will have have to be transferred to another class, as exceptions 1 or 2 take precedence over a medical exemption.

  8. Compass’s COVID policies, including requirements for masks, may be amended with little to no notice if state law changes, further mandates are placed on businesses/learning centers, community conditions change, and/or new recommendations are made.

• Hand Washing
  Students will be asked to wash or sanitize their hands immediately upon entering a classroom. Before taking a seat or touching supplies, students will be expected to wash their hands with soap and water (in rooms with sinks) or with alcohol-based hand sanitizer (in rooms without sinks).
• Restrooms
  Compass has self-contained restrooms that are not shared with any other building tenants. The number of plumbing fixtures exceeds code requirements, and the additional sinks facilitate additional hand-washing. Restroom doors have foot will pedals to allow people to open and exit restrooms from within without using the door handles.
• Gloves
  The use of disposable gloves is strongly discouraged among students, siblings, parents/guardians, or teachers except when required for a particular science experiment or art project. Frequent and thorough hand-washing or use of hand sanitizer is encouraged over disposable gloves which can provide a false sense of security to wearers.
• Sanitary Supplies
  Stand-mounted hand sanitizer dispensers are located near the entrances and Commons areas. Tissues will be provided in each classroom to cover coughs and sneezes.
• Temperature Scans
  Temperature scans are not routinely performed or required for daily entry. However, any Compass student, sibling, parent/guardian, teacher, or visitor can request to have their temperature taken with a no-touch temporal thermometer at the front desk as an added precaution. Any individual with a fever will be asked to leave or be picked up promptly, however, Compass takes no responsibility for interpreting the results of these measurements or making medical recommendations.