Last updated on September 14th, 2021 at 03:28 pm
The Joffrey Ballet School studios and residence halls are designed to provide our community with safe in-person instruction as well as clean & healthy boarding. The following information represents an overview of the COVID-19-related safety and sanitation protocols we are following for on-site participation during the 2021 – 2022 academic year. No student is required to participate in any program or environment in which they are not comfortable. For those students, we do recommend considering our virtual programming option.
Children’s & Youth Division
- All dancers ages 12 and over are required to be fully vaccinated to attend in-person classes.
- Masks are required at all times within the building, regardless of vaccination status. This includes the full duration of all classes. Masks must fully cover the mouth and nose.
- A negative COVID-19 diagnostic test must be submitted for the start of the school year. Students can submit either a PCR test taken within five days of starting or a Rapid test taken within 3 days of starting.
- After this, monthly COVID-19 testing is required, regardless of vaccination status. If a dancer is a student in NYC Public Schools, a participating private or parochial school, you can submit the negative test results from your monthly school COVID-19 Testing. Otherwise, dancers must go to a testing site or medical provider for a COVID-19 diagnostic test, such as PCR or rapid/antigen. Additional testing and doctor clearance notes may be required due to contagious illness symptoms and/or suspected or confirmed close contact status.
- Health Screening must be honestly completed to enter the building. Failure to disclose illness or to properly/timely report symptoms could result in expulsion or removal from the program.
Trainee Division
- All dancers ages 12 and over are required to be fully vaccinated. Exemptions are considered on a case-by-case basis.
- Masks are required at all times within the building, regardless of vaccination status. This includes the full duration of all classes. Masks must fully cover the mouth and nose.
- A negative COVID-19 diagnostic test must be submitted for the start of the school year. Students can submit either a PCR test taken within five days of starting or a Rapid test taken within 3 days of starting.
- After this, monthly COVID-19 testing is required, regardless of vaccination status. Dancers must go to a testing site or medical provider for a COVID-19 diagnostic test, such as PCR or rapid/antigen during their designated testing week each month. Additional testing and doctor clearance notes may be required due to contagious illness symptoms and/or suspected or confirmed close contact status.
- Health Screening must be honestly completed to enter the building. Failure to disclose illness or to properly/timely report symptoms could result in expulsion or removal from the program.
Open Program
- All dancers ages 12 and over are required to be fully vaccinated.
- Masks are required at all times within the building, regardless of vaccination status. This includes the full duration of all classes. Masks must fully cover the mouth and nose.
- Health screening must be honestly completed to enter the building. Failure to disclose illness or to properly/timely report symptoms could result in expulsion or removal from the program.
All of our dance studios, restrooms, offices and common areas at Joffrey Ballet School are furnished with a HEPA Air Filtration system that is designed to filter pollution, bacteria and viruses, including COVID-19, out of the air. These advanced systems filter the entire air volume of a room five to seven times an hour. Aside from daily cleanings, we have also scheduled frequent disinfecting procedures that are performed before, during and after classes at the studio and residence hall.
All of our Hybrid / In-Person students have been placed in cohorts that will follow the same schedule. Dance studios are operated under reduced capacity.
We are dedicated to promoting safety and have mandated practices at all of our locations that include social distancing in common areas and in the dance studios, requirement of masks and PPE (when necessary), unidirectional travel instructions and staggered arrival and departure times to avoid congregations in the corridors and common areas.
The safety of our community is always of utmost importance, and we appreciate your support to keep our community safe. Our policies are subject to change as the situation and guidance of best practices evolve. We will continue to follow state and federal requirements, as well as referring to the best practice recommendations of Dance/USA Task Force on Dancer Health, World Health Organization, and more as we develop and maintain our School safety policies.