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Guidelines & Guardrails

At Steve & Kate’s Camp, we champion freedom alongside a robust framework of safeguards, policies, and protocols to foster safe and supportive camp environments. These guidelines and guardrails are designed to cultivate an inclusive and secure space for all our campers, staff, and families.

The Three Camp Responsibilities

With great freedom comes great responsibilities–and we’re here for it. Campers are expected to uphold these three core responsibilities to maintain a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for everyone: Respect, Safety, and Caretaking. We suggest watching the below video with your camper(s) to familiarize them with these important guidelines. We’ll also review these responsibilities with campers on a daily basis.

The Three Camp Responsibilities

With great freedom comes great responsibilities–and we’re here for it. Campers are expected to uphold these three core responsibilities to maintain a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for everyone: Respect, Safety, and Caretaking. We suggest watching the below video with your camper(s) to familiarize them with these important guidelines. We’ll also review these responsibilities with campers on a daily basis.

Safety Precautions

We’re all about covering every angle of camp with top-notch safety measures to keep things safe and sound, while campers focus on being campers.

Plan for Care of Mildly Ill or Injured Campers

All camp staff are trained in first aid and CPR. Staff will assess each mildly ill or injured camper. Parents/Guardians will be notified if symptoms or complaints warrant, or if the camper desires them to do so. The camper will be able to rejoin activities if symptoms/complaints and medical assessment allows.

Any injury to the head, face, neck, or genitals will result in an immediate call to parents as a precaution. Staff are trained in concussion signs and symptoms and will monitor campers closely.

Procedure for Emergency Care 

All camp staff are trained in first aid and CPR. The closest staff member to the injured camper will ensure the child is safe and not in any immediate harm, offering basic first aid if needed, and calling the camp director. The Director will assess the injured camper and make a plan for emergency care treatment. If needed, they will designate a staff member to call 911 immediately and the Director or the Assistant Director will notify the parent/guardian of the emergency. If the parent/guardian cannot be reached the emergency contact person(s) listed by the parent/guardian on the camper’s registration will be called in order. If the situation does not indicate an immediate 911 call, the camp director or assistant director will call the child’s parents/guardians and emergency contacts until someone can be reached or until such a time as emergency transport is deemed necessary. The director or assistant director will accompany the camper to the hospital until a parent, guardian or care taker arrives.

Safety & Emergency Drills

Our camps conduct safety and emergency drills every camp session. During the summer drills are conducted once a month, starting the second day of camp. These safety drills help prepare staff and campers for the following potential emergency situations: evacuation, shelter in place, and lockdown. Learn more about each drill and their purpose, below:

Evacuation Drills: ‘Evacuation’ is used if campers and staff need to be moved to a new or safe location.  During the drill we will move all campers and staff to a designated evacuation spot, and take attendance to ensure everyone is accounted for. Once the drill or emergency is cleared by the Director or local emergency personnel, campers will be escorted back on campus together. 

Shelter In Place Drills: ‘Shelter in place’ is used whenever campers and staff need to take shelter for a weather emergency. During the drill we will move all campers and staff indoors and take attendance to ensure everyone is accounted for. Once the drill or emergency is cleared by the Director or local emergency personnel, campers will be released back to activities. 

LockdownDrill: A ‘lockdown’ is used if there is a potential threat in, or near campus. During this drill all campers and staff will move into the nearest classroom–away from any windows or doors. Staff will close & lock the entire campus to block access to camp rooms. Once the director has ensured the building was locked down correctly, regular programming will resume.

Drill Notifications: 

Our team will post notification signs outside of camp the day before, and the day of any on-site drills. Please reach out to your local team for any questions or concerns about these planned procedures.

Food

Lunch and snacks are included daily. All camps will offer cheese pizza, as well as rotating favorites like soups, sandwiches or salads, We’ll also have kid-friendly snacks such as fresh fruit, yogurt and popcorn for campers to nosh on throughout the day. You can find your local camp menu on your camp page. If you have any questions about your camp’s menu please reach out to your local director.

Food From Home:

If you decide, for whatever reason, to pack a lunch or additional snacks, please leave out any products containing nuts or shellfish for the safety of other children who may have severe allergies. Please also make sure to label any lunch boxes /bags with your child’s full name so campers and staff can easily identify it.

Each morning our check-in staff will review any food brought from home for products containing nuts or shellfish. Any products or food items containing these ingredients will be sent back home. Please make sure all food from home is ready-to-eat, as we do not have refrigeration or heating available on site.

Food Allergies:

We’ve carefully selected a menu of snacks and lunch entrée items that naturally adhere to as many of our campers’ allergies and dietary needs as possible. No food items provided by camp contain nuts, or nut products. However, some products may have been packaged or prepared in a facility that has nut products. Still, since all camp food is prepared and/or sourced off-site, we are unable to guarantee that snacks and lunches provided or ingredients used in food activities are safe for exposure to or consumption by children with severe food allergies. If your child has a severe allergy please be sure to bring all food from home ready-to-eat (since no refrigeration and heating are available), for your child each day.

Families may request to have their child sit separately from other campers during lunch for allergy safety by updating their profile in their S&K account or by calling our central support line at 415-389-5437.

To discuss allergy specifics, please reach out to your local director.

Visitors On Campus

Any camp performers on campus (beyond our curbside check-in/out area) will be background checked and supervised by our team the entire time they are on campus. For the safety of all children in our care, parents, guardians, and any other adult visitors must check-in with our staff and be escorted while on campus*. 

*Please note that per local regulations, camp tours are not allowed at our Boston camp locations.

 

One-to-One Support

While we provide accommodations for disability or medical-related reasons, we are a group program and do not provide one-to-one care; however, families/guardians may provide that level of support at their own expense.

Children requiring an accommodation for a disability or medical-related reason may be approved to receive one to one support provided by the family/guardian at their own cost after meeting the following requirements:

  • Child Health Care Plan signed by a physician.
  • A completed and clear background check for the designated person providing one to one support (may be provided by a third party employer, or by the camp, if applicable).
  • Therapist and One to One Support acknowledgement form completed by the one to one support.

 

On-Site Therapist

Children requiring services for a disability or medical-related reason may be approved to receive services while in attendance at Camp from their therapist after meeting the following requirements:

The foregoing applies only to accommodations for a disability or medical-related reason. Outside of these reasons,  Steve & Kate’s does not permit nannies, family members, or other third parties to accompany a child or attend our programs.

Any one to one support or therapist that accompanies a camper to Steve & Kate’s Camp is subject to the same rules, guidelines, and instructions as Steve & Kate’s Camp Staff, and they must act in accordance with any applicable laws.

DEI Statement

We recognize that, in today’s society, children face a wide variety of barriers to feeling included and are not always celebrated for what makes them unique. It’s our responsibility as a community-based organization to create an environment in which people of all races, nationalities, ethnicities, sexes, ages, abilities, religions, sexual orientation, and gender identities can come together to play and learn collaboratively and respectfully. The use of racial, homophobic, religious, or ethnic slurs from anyone in our camp community is also grounds for camp dismissal.

As part of our overall commitment to building an inclusive environment, we also invite directors to highlight diversity through our programming. Depending on which season/month the camp operates, these celebrations could include, but are not limited to, Latinx Heritage, Black History, Chinese New Year, AAPI Heritage, Juneteenth and Pride (which could include local LGBTQ+ performers/shows and parades). Books provided in our Library at camp are likely to include age appropriate explorations around race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status and gender identity.

Gender Identity & Bathrooms

At Steve & Kate’s, we want to support all of our campers and create an environment where campers feel safe and respected. As such, we stand behind and support the ability of campers to use bathroom facilities and pronouns that align with their Gender Identity. And since we have campers that attend Steve & Kate’s that don’t identify as either a girl or boy, we strive to provide gender neutral or private restroom options. If gender neutral bathrooms are not possible at some locations due to the physical limitations, we will work with campers and parents/guardians to determine a safe and comfortable bathroom option.

Refunds

Any unused Day Passes will be automatically refunded in full. If we owe you a refund after the camp season, we’ll take care of that automatically 10 business days after our last camp closes, or sooner if you paid with an electronic check (ACH). Refunds will usually come back to you in the same method you paid. It’s as easy as that. If you need a paper check refund instead, just let your local director know before the last day of camp.

*Please note that refunds are not applicable to employer-sponsored Bright Horizons Back-Up Care benefits, as we do not collect any money directly from families for use. Please reach out to Bright Horizons or your benefit team for questions regarding any cancellations or potential refunds.