Ambassador Club's Illness Policies

Ambassador Coaches and Leadership Team members have spent time discussing, reading details, praying about and, working through the issues tied to the many opinions regarding the coronavirus and its variants. We intend to be wise, prudent and use good common sense to protect your students and each other.

Our goals and priorities are to continue our in-person Club meetings for the 2023-2024 school year with continuing in-person instruction in the important life skills learned from speech and debate while protecting each student's, our coach's, and your extended family's health! We purpose to do this while also respecting each family's views on how to function with the continuing covid virus and all other contagious illnesses, of course, respecting and abiding by the policies of Aspen Grove Christian Church where we meet.

We are willing to continue to review these policies. They are all subject to revision based on new data and guidelines. We know there is a full spectrum of views on these matters. So if you have strongly held convictions about these policies, please email me about your concerns. Feel free to communicate! We are a Speech and Debate Club, so do share your evidence! I am serious. See my email address at the end of this page.

Here are the guidelines we have for Ambassador Club:
WAIVERS
Medical and Liability Waivers are included in the registration packet and can be found on the Registration Packet page. We have routinely required waivers at all our tournaments prior to coronavirus and are advised, as many home school groups are doing, that we use these now.

MASKS
In keeping with Governor Lee's Executive Order, Ambassador Club's policy regarding masks is that the decision of whether a student wears a mask or does not wear a mask to Ambassador Club is one to be made by parents for their students.

Masks at Ambassador Club are not required for students, parents, coaches, or Club leaders.

Our policy is that students, parents, coaches, and Club leaders are free to choose to wear masks or to not wear masks. Either choice will be without any push back from the other students in Club, from coaches, or from Club leaders.

Certainly, if you have medical reasons which prevent you from wearing a mask, you should not wear a mask nor do you have to provide any medical documentation for verification.

SELF-CHECKING/STAYING HOME WHEN SICK
Among the things we ask, as just a matter of common sense, is that we all act responsibly by wisely checking our own health and that of our family members so that we avoid attending Club when ill with any illness whether the common cold, flu, or any other contagious sickness.

Here are our common sense self-checking guidelines:
We will all agree to not attend the Ambassadors for Christ Speech and Debate Club when a student or any member of your household has tested positive for COVID-19 or exhibited the following COVID-19 symptoms within the last 14 days:
-Fever
-shortness of breath
-difficulty breathing
-dry cough
-runny nose
-sore throat
-chills
-shaking
-muscle pain
-headache
-and/or an altered taste or smell

SEPARATE CLASSROOMS
Both the Junior Varsity and the Senior Varsity Clubs meet in separate classrooms and they will continue in that pattern this school year.

GOOD HYGIENE/HAND WASHING at CLUB
As we live with coronavirus and others contagious illnesses we remind you, and ask parents to remind your children, that we are all better protected by common sense good hygiene practices, in particular, washing hands after blowing noses, covering coughs, using the restroom. We all know these practices help protect the health of everyone and we definitely encourage these during Club time.

SNACK BREAK PLANS
Ambassador Club will provide, as we have in the past, snacks & bottled water for our break from 10:45-11:00 each week.

If students wish they can certainly bring their own drink bottles with their names on them for Club and snack break.

FEEDBACK FROM YOU
Please let us hear from you and give us your feedback on these guidelines as we are working to serve you and your family. Email me at lana.thornton@gmail.com.

Thank you!
May God Bless us as we return to Ambassador Club for the 2023-2024 school year!