JDT Health and Safety Procedures
Studio Use: Effective 7/21/21

Arrival

Health Questionnaire – Upon arrival at the JDT and Lemon Creek studios, JDT personnel will ask each student to confirm the absence of COVID-like symptoms. Parents are asked to wait in their vehicle until their child has been cleared to enter the building. Students exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 will not be admitted. Dancers should stay home if they are feeling ill. While we are no longer checking temperatures prior to each class, staff do have thermometers on hand. In the event a student falls ill during class, staff will obtain a forehead temperature reading, and notify the parents at dismissal.

Dressing Room Closed – Dancers must arrive to the studio dressed for class. Dressing room will not be available and changing in the restrooms is not permitted. Dancers must remove their street shoes in the lobby before entering the studio (JDT), or in a designated area near the entrance (Lemon Creek). WEEKDAY CLASSES and Levels 2-6 at the JDT studio: Dance bags and ALL personal belongings (including street shoes) will be brought into the studio and set along the perimeter of the room and on shoe mats at the far door. Please contain all belongings to one bag or backpack. SATURDAY YOUNG DANCERS at the JDT studio: Street shoes and all belongings must be placed in an empty bin along the lobby wall, before entering the studio. ALL CLASSES AT THE LEMON CREEK STUDIO: dance bags and personal belongings will be placed along the perimeter of the room, as instructed by faculty.

Hand Sanitizer – Hand washing in the restrooms, prior to class, is strongly encouraged. Dancers will be provided hand sanitizer upon entering the dance studio at both locations, and as needed while on the premises. Dancers may bring their own hand sanitizer if preferred.

During Use

Closed Areas of Studio – The dressing room area at JDT, is closed for the foreseeable future. The storage closet in the studio is also closed to student access. The kitchen at JDT is open to upper-level dancers, on a limited basis, for the purpose of storing or consuming food during long stretches of class and rehearsals.

Face Coverings – Face masks are required for all individuals (vaccinated and unvaccinated), age 3+, while at JDT and the Lemon Creek studios. Exceptions may be made for individuals working alone, or when small groups of vaccinated individuals are working together in the studio. (Fewer than 6 people)

Lobby – In order to deter congregating, furniture has been removed from the lobby. Parents are expected to drop off and pick up their child promptly, and wait in their vehicles. SATURDAY YOUNG DANCERS: One parent may escort child in to JDT, and assist them until they enter the studio for class. Masks are required, and reasonable attempts to social distance from those outside of your household, are appreciated.

Restrooms – Restrooms are open at both locations. Please wash hands thoroughly.

Social (Physical) Distancing – Instructors will take reasonable steps to space students at 6’ distances during classes; however, we acknowledge it is unlikely all students will maintain consistent spacing throughout all combinations, choreography and other exercises.

After Use

Exiting the Studio – WEEKDAY CLASSES and Levels 2-6 at JDT: Dancers will exit the building via the stairwell at the FAR end of the dance studio. Note this is an EXIT ONLY. At no time may the exterior door be propped open, or used as an entrance for JDT students. Parents waiting in vehicles must not block AK Litho delivery vehicles, and are asked not to back into parking spaces with exhaust emitting toward either building. SATURDAY YOUNG DANCERS: Dancers will collect belongings from their bin in the hallway, and exit through the main stairwell. ALL CLASSES AT THE LEMON CREEK STUDIO: Dancers will use the single right-hand door, enter and exit, taking care not to crowd, or gather in, the doorway. Please yield to those EXITING the buildings, before you enter (both locations).

Cleaning – After each use, JDT personnel cleans the studios, sanitizing high touch objects including doors and doorknobs, ballet barres, stereo equipment, and bathroom faucets, handles and counter. Floors are mopped and sanitized frequently throughout the week.

Returning from Travel

Students and faculty returning to Juneau from in or out of state must have a negative test result before attending in-person classes, and must self-monitor for COVID-like symptoms.

Notification of Exposure to COVID-19:
At a minimum, JDT will take the following steps upon learning of possible exposure and/or positive cases among our faculty, staff, and student population. Our ability to act quickly is dependent on timely notification from affected families. Thank you for your attention and cooperation in this matter.

If JDT receives notification that a student or faculty may have had close contact with a positive COVID-19 case outside of their household: The individual will not be allowed on the premises until they receive and present a negative test result, or quarantine for 14 days. JDT will continue our normal regimen of thorough and frequent sanitizing; JDT will continue operations, and provide updated information as it becomes available.

If JDT receives notification of a positive COVID-19 case inside a student or faculty's household: The individual will not be allowed on the premises until they receive and present two negative test results or quarantine for 14 days, and show no symptoms. JDT will email or text families known to have had direct contact with the student (ie. faculty and classmates); JDT may temporarily suspend operations, or transition to virtual delivery of instruction. JDT will provide updated information as it becomes available, and resume in-person classes when it is safe to do so.

Please notify JDT immediately, if you or your child is exposed to COVID-19. Dancers in a household with exposure to the virus, or who subject to isolation requirements, may have an opportunity to participate in class via Zoom, or recorded videos on our website, whichever is appropriate, and when such means are available.

All JDT in person classes for the remainder of the semester are cancelled. READ THE FULL MESSAGE from JDT Board President, Chris McDowell.

JDT is committed to the health, safety, and well-being of our community. We are closely monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic, and Juneau's response and preparation. Please continue to protect yourselves and others by following the recommendations of CDC, and health mandates from the CBJ, and the State of Alaska. We miss being in the studio with you, but are uplifted to see so many of you finding creative ways to train and stay active while restricted from public gatherings. Keep up the good work!

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Spring Semester Classes

At this time, we expect JDT to remain closed through May 1. Faculty have been brainstorming alternate methods of instruction delivery to help fill in the gaps, pass the time, and keep students moving. Students can expect to receive a mix of pre-recorded and live, interactive classes taught by our faculty. We will also continue to share links to other online resources, through email and on our social media pages.

Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time of uncertainty.

Spring Showcase

All JDT events and gatherings through May 23 have been canceled or postponed; this includes upcoming Spring Showcase performances (April 24-25). We are realistic, yet hopeful for the possibility of rescheduling, as the show was to include an original work by composer, William Todd Hunt, and an exciting collaboration with a live orchestra. Our hardworking dancers of all ages were eager showcase their progress and share their talent with the Juneau Community. We are disappointed, and know our students are too, but hope they understand.

Fine Arts Camp

We are continuing to recruit and hire teachers, and plan a wonderfully creative and diverse schedule for our annual Fine Arts Camp (FAC), June 1-26. We will do the very best we can to host our popular K-6 camp, for as many weeks as possible, if we are permitted, and if it is deemed safe to do so. Check our Fine Arts Camp page for updates. We have delayed opening registration until early May. 

Summer Programs

JDT's Young Dancer Program (July 27-31; Creative Movement through Level 3) and Summer Intensive (August 3-15; Levels 3-6) are on the schedule, and registration will open in early April. We intend to carry out our summer programming, if it is safe to do so, and if we are in compliance with municipal and state mandates for group gathering. We will email families when registration is up and running. In the meantime, check out our prestigious guest faculty on our Summer Intensive page.

Your Continued Support 

As a non-profit arts organization, JDT depends on the generosity of our patrons to present dance on stage, teach ballet, and host events in our community. We anticipate a significant loss of revenue as a result of COVID-19. If you believe in the power of human connection through dance, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to JDT today. We are doing everything we can to keep JDT physically, and fiscally, healthy. Our beloved Juneau, and every community across the globe, faces a very real financial uncertainty, and possibly distress. We are dedicated to making sure there is a JDT to come back to, in the event the business interruptions persist beyond our current closure date of May 1, but we will need some help!

Also visit us on social media @juneaudancetheatre to engage with JDT’s online community.

Thank you for your support during this difficult and unprecedented event. We regret the inconvenience to you and very much look forward to welcoming you back soon. 

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