Safer Studio Policy

At Diamond School of Dance, LLC (DSD) the health and safety of our members’ staff, students, guests, and communities have always been our highest priority; a commitment that has only been heightened at this time in history. That’s why we have used local and national guidelines to inform our best practices for service continuity and re-opening. 

Because dance meets imperative student needs for physical, social, and emotional well being, we are committed to helping our staff and students navigate reopening. We follow the Safer Studio™ standards put forth by our national association, More Than Just Great Dancing!® along with the utmost care and consultation of our local health departments and locally available information. 

Governmental Regulations 

DSD follows the Governor’s Executive Order #82, which mandates the use of masks inside buildings and advocates the same for clients until Sept. 28. We also adhere to the Governor’s Emergency Order #1, which allows for exceptions. 

Education 

DSD staff, parents, and dancers are informed about the symptoms of COVID-19 including, fever, cough, shortness of breath, diarrhea (watery), sore throat/congestion, headache, chills, muscle and joint pain (multiple), nausea or vomiting and, loss of sense of smell. 

Dancers and staff should STAY HOME if they have any symptoms of COVID-19. They should also notify the studio owners/administrators and contact healthcare providers if they develop symptoms. If in doubt, sit them out. 

Return to Training

1. DSD follows a phased approach to reopening physical services.

2. DSD’s reopening plan:

• Reinforces an attendance policy that does not allow employees to work when sick or students to attend classes when sick.
• Reinforces of proper hygiene and health standards with all staff members and students, including frequent handwashing and/or sanitizing, not touching the face, and sneezing and/or coughing into elbows.
• Increases frequency of sanitation in high traffic areas and high touch surfaces of the studio such as barres, floors, counters, stereos, and bathrooms/locker areas.
• Adjusts studio operations based on public health guidelines and recommendations regarding PPE, assembly/gathering/occupancy size, and social distancing where possible and practical.
• Adjusts curriculum and teacher training to reduce or eliminate hand-holding, equipment-sharing, and mingling where possible and practical.
• Communicates a clear policy for each phase of opening regarding student drop-off and pick-up, lobby availability, and amenity use.
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3. DSD has a variety of service options available including private instruction, small group instruction, traditional classes, and online instruction where possible and practical, to meet the needs of students and staff as well as for the ability to maintain service continuity in any situation.

4. DSD has a clear system of communicating the status of classes, such as a “green, yellow, red” protocol. Green indicates it is safe to attend face-to-face classes. Yellow indicates a cautionary change to service delivery. Red indicates clients should stay home and attend class online.

5. DSD understands that unlike older children and adults, young children cannot be expected to maintain social distancing at all times. Therefore, we focus on a hierarchy of measures beginning with avoiding contact with anyone with symptoms, frequent hand cleaning and good hygiene practices, amplified cleaning, and minimizing contact and mingling.

6. If DSD receives a report of exposure risk, any affected classes will be notified, and exposure-risk level cleaning will be enacted. There is absolutely no penalty for absence and classes may be made up in-person (space permitting) or online (anytime).

Additional Considerations 

As DSD we are proud of the work our team has done for the past two decades to create the highest quality experiences and environments for our staff, students, and guests. Because of this groundwork, and the strength of our network, we believe our studio is in a strong position for a responsibly reopening. We are honored to continue to serve our community in this time. 

Sincerely, 

Alicia Knopps