We are happy to announce NC 4-H has a plan in place to start working with youth in person face to face!
What we don't have is a definite date on when this will start.
We do want to share with you what we know now and as we have more information we will share it as it comes in.
-First and foremost this plan starts after Governor Cooper moves the state to phase 3. At this time we don't expect that to be before mid July.
-Secondly, when working with youth we will be expected to follow all the guidelines set forth in the Governor's order, things such as wearing masks, washing hands, disinfecting all touch points will be required. Also if there are number caps for social distancing such as currently only 10 people inside and 25 outside we will be expected to strictly adhere to this. So for example, a club meeting that is indoors, includes two volunteers and eight youth, at that point you are maxed out on who can be there. So please keep that in mind.
-One other thing as we start to integrate this we will be working with our oldest youth in person face to face first. Our youth 11 through 18 will be able to meet in person following all social distancing guidelines. This is because after much research the state 4-H office feels these age groups will be best able to social distance, stay 6 feet apart in a room, and not feel the need to be on top of each other. Often with our younger youth it is hard for them to understand why we need physical distance and they are drawn to each other, no matter how many times you remind them to separate they forget and are rolling around and chasing each other. It is also harder for the younger ages to keep their hands away from their faces and from touching everything. We want to make sure we keep not only our youth safe, but the families they will go home to. Dr. Yoder said he hopes that we will be able to bring back the younger youth in the Fall but it will all be based on the COVID numbers in NC at that time.
-Once we are able to meet in person face to face each meeting will need to be approved prior to the event (by prior we do not mean a few minutes-we are talking at least two to four weeks prior). Please email myself or Wendy as we have to go through the appropriate chain to get approval.
One big thing to remember is that we do not do this unless you are comfortable doing it. If you are in a high risk group or feel that due to the size of a program or club it is best to wait and continue meeting virtually. That is how we will proceed.
We will continue to have virtual programs, even after we can work in person face to face with youth for a variety of reasons.
Before any of this happens we will have a virtual volunteer training on the steps that need to be taken to safely meet in person as well as signage and guidelines you will need. We want to be supportive of our families and their concerns as we slowly move into this new direction and we want our volunteers to know that we have your backs as well.
If you have any questions about this please contact me at Shea_Ann_DeJarnette@ncsu.edu. In the meantime keep listening for phase 3 to open up here in NC and we will be in touch with a virtual training before we start back face to face.
Thank you for your time, patience, and resilience during this interesting time,
Christy, Wendy, and Shea Ann
No comments:
Post a Comment