COVID Mitigation

Keeping Campers Safe

Being mindful that the risk of exposure and possible infection is real and present in any community environment where large numbers of people are regularly interacting, UIW, as well as our faculty and staff, are engaged in numerous efforts to prevent, mitigate, and respond to the spread of COVID-19 on our campuses. Efforts include, but are not limited to, increased cleaning, implementation of mask and face-covering protocols, social distancing, hand sanitizing stations, and other mitigation strategies. Details of how some of these strategies will apply to any camps hosted at UIW, are listed below, but are not comprehensive.

None of us can know what the future holds for sure, but given the increasing availability and uptake of vaccines, we are optimistic that we can host our camps at UIW. However, we are also planning for contingencies, such as the possibility of going fully remote, hybrid labs, or other strategies to ensure the safety of students, faculty and staff. Should your child or children attend our camps, we will work to keep you updated on camp format. Should the camps be held on campus, we will also work to keep you updated on safety measures we adopt, guided by CDC, federal, state, local and campus policy and recommendations.

Please understand that despite the best efforts of the University, as well as our faculty and staff, it is impossible to eliminate the risk of positive cases or an outbreak on our campuses or in our camps. Therefore, if camps are indeed hosted on campus, we cannot guarantee that you and/or your children, and others, will not be exposed to SARS-CoV2 and become infected with COVID-19. By engaging in the on-campus community of UIW, you understand there are risks related to exposure to COVID-19 which the University as well as our camp faculty and staff cannot completely eliminate.

To reduce risk, as circumstances dictate, we may require the following at our discretion: temperature checks, social distancing, wearing masks or other facial coverings, using other PPE, mandatory reporting of suspected and positive infections, and we may remove student(s) from camp for illness or non-compliance. We do this not just for ourselves, but for the safety of others, because this is consistent with the Mission and spirit of how we care for one another at UIW.

Additionally, we rely on every member of our community – including you – to do their part. This means adhering to national, state, local, and university health and safety guidelines and requirements, whether on or off campus, including complying with mandatory guidelines of the CDC and UIW, and informing students and guests at our campus to do the same.