For our program we are prepared to follow the published recommendations from the GHSA (Georgia High School Association), US Lacrosse, and NFHS (National Federation of State High School Associations) regarding safe "return to play" for sports.  In addition, we will also follow the threat level determined by our local Fayette County school system.  When the threat level is Red, we will structure practices to be non-contact, and will have strict social distancing measures in place.  When the threat level is Yellow, we will look to incorporate a small amount of contact drill to give the girls more variety in practice.  The majority of what the Covid-considerate program will be, is stick skills and individual skill development.  We do not need to run contact drills for your athlete to experience substantial growth in her game or to have lots of fun.  

When the Covid threat level is Green, we will have normal practices, with a few caveats: as has become typical for all of us living in the new age of Covid, we ask that you let us know immediately if someone in your family has tested positive, and please do not come to practice if you are experiencing any symptoms and have knowingly been exposed to any positive case of Covid.  If you have been exposed, but have yet to experience symptoms, we ask that you either wear a mask, or skip the next upcoming practice as a precaution.  

There are a number of measures that we will have in place when the threat level is "yellow", to provide additional safeguards to prevent possible transmission.  We want to keep everyone safe but also want to allow the kids to play lacrosse and regain some sense of routine and regular social interaction with their peers.  

  

Sanitizer: We will have ample hand sanitizer to let the kids clean their hands and sticks before and after practice. 

# of Players: We will keep our groups small (<10 players/coach) 

6-foot distance: The majority of our drills and skills will have a built-in distance between players. 

Shared Equipment: We never pick up the balls with our hands, and everyone plays with their own sticks, so there's little opportunity to touch shared equipment.  We will, however, also advise the girls not to do so.

Water Breaks: We will have designated cones set up for the players to set their water and bags when they arrive at practice, and will remind them to go to their cones and keep their distance during water breaks.  Girls should NEVER share water, not even with a sibling.

Temperature Checks: We request that you take your athlete's temperature before practice, and sign a sheet indicating that they don't have a fever.  Anyone with 100.3 temp or higher will not be allowed to participate in practice activities.  

Exposure: We also ask that anyone who has been exposed to anyone who is sick, please stay home to help keep everyone safe.  Springtime is always the beginning of allergy season, and it seems that every other kid comes down with a cold or sniffles -- and hard to know if it is just allergies, or is Covid!  We ask that you please use an abundance of caution in evaluating whether or not your athlete should go to practice and please keep her home if you have been exposed to or have a household family member who has tested positive for Covid.  
Spectators: We ask that our spectators keep a 6-foot distance among one another at practices and with any kid you encounter at practice.  There's lots of fresh air and real estate at Kedron, so please keep a safe distance to limit possible exposure.  
Attendance Records:  We will keep attendance and temperature/symptom records of every athlete attending every practice, so that we have accurate documentation in case one of us gets sick. 
Self-Reporting Honor Code: We ask that you alert us immediately if anyone in your family gets sick or tests positive for Covid, as we will want to inform the other athletes who attended any day that you did so that we can each make informed decisions about our health and optional contact with any possible higher-risk individuals that we know.  

While I know that we're all hoping the world will be back to *normal* soon, we recognize that there will be bumps along the way.  However, we are very confident that lacrosse is actually one of the easiest sports to do safely without close contact or shared equipment, so we're excited to get our girls out playing -- in a way that is both safe for your family & community, and also productive for a successful experience playing lacrosse.