VIRGINIA MARTIAL ARTS CENTER
COVID-19 Protocols for Live Classes
For more than 40 years Virginia Martial Arts Center’s top priority has always been the training and development of our students in a fun and safe manner. Over the past few months, COVID-19 necessitated a move to virtual training in order to maintain our standards of safety. Now that Virginia has entered Phase 3, Virginia Martial Arts Center is happy to announce a return to in-person training and to the operation our Summer Karate Sports Camp beginning on Monday, July 6th. We are excited to see our students again and are busy preparing the Dojo to be a safe, clean and healthy training environment.
HEALTH, SAFETY, AND STAFFING
Your family’s safety is our top priority at Virginia Martial Arts Center. Our protocols are based on recommendations from governmental agencies that include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Virginia Department of Health, and the Martial Arts Industry Association. Virginia Martial Arts Center is continually reviewing all program practices and protocols with the goal of limiting the spread of infectious disease such as COVID-19. We will continue to adopt practices and protocols as new guidelines are presented.
Virginia Governor’s Executive Order 65 mandates the following protocols for our operations:
•Patrons, members, and guests must remain at least ten feet apart during all activities.
•Instructors and all participants of group exercise and fitness classes must maintain at least ten feet of physical distancing between each other as much as possible.
•The total number of attendees (including both participants and instructors) in all group exercise and fitness classes cannot exceed the lesser of 75% of the minimum occupancy load on the certificate of occupancy or 50 patrons, members, and guests.
•Employees working in customer-facing areas are required to wear face coverings over their nose and mouth at all times.
•Employers must ensure cleaning and disinfection of shared equipment after each use.
•Facilities shall prohibit the use of any equipment that cannot be thoroughly disinfected between uses (e.g., climbing rope, exercise bands, etc.).
•Businesses must supply hand sanitizer stations or hand washing stations for patrons, members, and guests. In compliance and in addition to those protocols, Virginia Martial Arts Center will administer the following procedures.
•The dressing rooms will be off-limits to all students. Everyone should come to the Dojo dressed and ready for class.
•Each student should bring their own water bottle as the water fountain will not be available.
•A maximum 70 people, including students, instructors and staff, will be allowed in the dojo at any point in time.
•All participants will enter through the main doorway and exit via the Power Kid/Tai Chi Dojo door or the two main Karate floor doors.
•Parents are asked not to enter the Dojo to watch class. Classes will be streamed so parents may watch from their cars.
•For parents with Dojo business, please enter through the main door, speak with our front desk team, and exit through the Power Kid/Tai Chi door. We are also happy to help you via phone and/or e-mail.
•Sneeze guards have been installed at the desks of the office manager, administrative assistant, and program director.
•Face masks must be worn in all public areas at all times. VMAC will provide masks for those without one and VMAC branded masks will be on sale.
•Students will enter through the main door, have their temperature scanned, their attendance card will be pulled by the staff and they will have a seat directly on one of the stickers on the Dojo floor. We ask they remain there until class begins.
•Directly after each class, the mats will be cleaned, sanitized, and swept by the staff and instructors prior to the next class being admitted. There will be 15 minutes between classes in order to clean thoroughly.
•Due to mandates surrounding in-person spacing, students will be required to register for an appointment on Calendly.com in order to attend class. Each student may attend up to two in-person classes per week - one class on either Monday or Tuesday and the second on either Wednesday or Thursday. Students may attend unlimited virtual classes as the live classes will be streamed on Zoom.
•Leaders will be allowed in the Beginner, Novice and Intermediate classes but limited to four leaders per class. Due to limited space, leaders will be required to set an appointment on Calendly.com for the classes they would like to attend.
STAFF PROTOCOLS
Several practices and protocols have been established to ensure the health and safety of all staff members and instructors. Some of the new protocols in place include:
•Pre-employment Health Screen - Staff will go through a comprehensive health screen.
•Daily Health Screen - Each staff member will complete a temperature and health screen at the start of each day.
•Masks - All staff members will follow the guidelines recommended by the CDC and follow the same rules shared with campers. Positive role modeling is important for all protocols and especially the wearing of masks.
•Social Distancing - Staff will follow the current guidelines offered by the Virginia Department of Health, and CDC recommendations.
•Training - All staff members will receive ongoing support, coaching, and training from our Management and outside agencies.
