How Are All Camper Screened?
Screening on opening day
All campers are screened by trained staff at their point of entry before being allowed on the camp premises
Bus
Campers are Screened Before Departing
Air Travel
Campers are Screened Before Boarding
Private Automobile
Campers are Screened Before Entering the Camp Premises
1
Temperature Checks (any camper with an elevated temperature according to CDC guidelines is not admitted)
2
Health Questionnaire
- Have you been sick in the last 14 days?
- Have you been around anyone that has been sick in the last 14 days?
- Have you traveled outside the country in the last month?
- Have your medications changed in the last two weeks?
- Do you have any medications with you? (Staff member to collect if yes)
- Hair-check for any evidence of lice
!
Any camper who is symptomatic or is suspicious of being symptomatic will not be allowed inside the Camp Ozark premises or be allowed to travel to camp by bus or airplane.
ONGOING Screening at camp
Continual screening during your child’s stay at Camp Ozark.
1
In 2020, staff will take camper temperatures daily at the cabin and are trained to recognize any additional symptoms of communicable diseases, forwarding campers with elevated temperatures or other symptoms to one of our two Health Centers immediately for further evaluation.
2
One-week campers are screened under the supervision of a medical professional mid-week during a health and wellness check for the following:
- Any evidence of symptoms of communicable illness
- Overall cleanliness including hair, skin, and nails
- Any rashes that need further medical attention
- Any infected bites that need further medical attention
3
Two-week campers are screened under the supervision of a medical professional in both the first and second week during a health and wellness check for the following:
- Any evidence of symptoms of communicable illness
- Overall cleanliness including hair, skin, and nails
- Any rashes that need further medical attention
- Any infected bites that need further medical attention
Camper Protection
Through the expertise of Praesidium, the nation’s leader in child protection, and Camp Ozark’s focused commitment and research, the camp has crafted screening, selection, monitoring, and reporting procedures that prioritize camper protection.
Multi-layered screening, training, and accountability
CAMPER PROTECTION
Child protection training
- In-person screening and selection training from Praesidium where staff recruiters are trained in advanced screening and detection—specifically in how to detect potentially high-risk applicants
- Praesidium-led child protection training for all permanent and summer staff prior to their arrival at camp
- Outside third-party expert professional training and rigorous in-house training for summer staff during Orientation
- Additional in-house Orientation training in the areas of camper care, supervision, and monitoring, as well as policy adherence and reporting procedures
CAMPER PROTECTION
Camper education, monitoring, and reporting
- Opening Day meetings with campers, grouped by age and gender and led by the assigned cabin counselors, Top Staff, Permanent Staff, and Leadership Staff. The purpose of these meetings is to educate our campers regarding appropriate camper behavior as well as age- and gender-specific reporting opportunities and options available to campers. These meetings also cover a variety of other topics relevant to our campers.
- Layered approach to cabin supervision
- Daily informal and formal cabin meetings between Permanent Staff, Top Staff, and cabin counselors for continuous cabin management and ease of reporting
- Strategically located “Help Boxes” for anonymous reporting and camper questions
CAMPER PROTECTION
Examples of child protection policies
- Gender-specific cabin areas
- Gender-specific ratios of staff and campers in program areas
- "Rule of Three"
- Cabin roamers
- Camp boundary monitors
- Multiple staff members in each cabin for overnight supervision
- And many more
Camp Ozark prioritizes campers’ safety through the use of multiple strategies, including, but not limited to, extensive training, strategic partnerships and emergency readiness, advanced emergency monitoring systems, and the use of advanced communication and technology platforms.
