COVID-19 Hotline

Health & Safety Protocols

Reporting Protocols for a Suspected COVID-19 Case

• Arrival Procedures

  All students should enter and exit the building through the main/front entrance no sooner than 15 minutes (for levels up to Ballet VII) or 30 minutes (for Academy and Pre-Professional levels) prior to the scheduled class start time. Family, friends, and other visitors may be admitted to lobbies and designated waiting areas, but space is limited. Alternatively, parents are welcome wait in their cars during their student’s class. All guests are encouraged to properly wear a face mask at all times within the building and follow all health and safety policies.

  As of Monday, March 28, 2022, masks are optional for students at Milwaukee Ballet School & Academy at all branch locations. Students are encouraged to mask as they feel comfortable. Students at our Baumgartner Center for Dance are requested to mask while in the common areas of the building as they are traveling to and from classes, and masks are preferred for any visitors in our main lobby. These common areas are shared with our Milwaukee Ballet Company and Milwaukee Ballet II dancers who are continuing to mask to ensure the success of their upcoming performances.es.

  All students in Creative Movement, Pre-Ballet I, II, III, and Ballet I through IV will be escorted out of class to the lobby by a MBSA faculty member.

• Attendance Guidelines

  Students should not come to class if they have been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 or if they are experiencing any possible symptoms of COVID-19, including:

  • Cough
  • Sore throat
  • Loss of taste or smell
  • Headache
  • Body ache
  • Chills
  • Fatigue
  • Abdominal pain
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea

  Masks are optional for students at all branch locations. Students are encouraged to mask as they feel comfortable. Students at our Baumgartner Center for Dance are requested to mask while in the common areas of the building as they are traveling to and from classes, and masks are preferred for any visitors in our main lobby.

  Milwaukee Ballet School & Academy reserves the right to determine that a student is not able to participate in class if symptoms are present. The decision to admit a student to the building rests solely with Milwaukee Ballet faculty and staff.

  Water drinking fountains are operational, but using a refillable bottle at refill stations is encouraged.

• Frequently Asked Questions | Part 1

  Q. What kind of symptoms will restrict anyone from entering a Milwaukee Ballet Facility?
  A. We are asking all students, guests, and staff to actively monitor themselves for symptoms and to not attend class or enter our facilities if they are feeling unwell. Please use the following information to determine if it’s safe to send your student to class and what actions may need to be taken; including if you need to seek a COVID-19 test.

  Students will be sent home and/or excluded from in-person classes if:

  • They have tested positive for COVID-19, with or without having symptoms, and have not yet finished their isolation period per public health recommendations.
  • They have been diagnosed with COVID-19 by a health care provider and have not yet finished their isolation period per public health recommendations.

  If your student has experienced the following symptoms within the last 24 hours or is currently experiencing the following symptoms above their baseline. we kindly ask them to refrain from attending classes and seek out a COVID-19 test:

  • Either cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, new loss of smell or taste OR
  • At least two of the following symptoms:
    • Fever (measured or subjective), or chills or rigors
    • Headache
    • Sore throat
    • Fatigue
    • Muscle or body aches
    • Congestion or runny nose
    • Nausea or vomiting
    • Diarrhea

  These symptom criteria apply to COVID-19-related exclusion. Other symptoms may also require exclusion for a different communicable disease. Generally, children with fever, diarrhea, or vomiting alone should be sent home for at least 24 hours, even if it is unrelated to COVID-19 infection.

  Q. What will happen if a student demonstrates any of these symptoms while in a Milwaukee Ballet Facility?
  A. A Milwaukee Ballet staff member will promptly isolate the student with their belongings in a designated part of the building.

  Milwaukee Ballet Staff will:

  • remain with the student.
  • contact the student’s parent/guardian and request to pick up the student as soon as possible.
  • discreetly notify their teacher that they have been excluded from class until further notice.
  • ask the student and their family to contact their primary care provider and immediately seek a COVID-19 test. If a positive case has been defined, MB Staff will contact the local Health Department for advice on next steps if MB is notified that it is a positive result. Health Department action may take up to 72 hours.

  Q. Will a program, class, or facility be shut down if a someone is suspected of having COVID-19?
  A. Milwaukee Ballet and the School & Academy will continue to operate as usual until a positive test result has been provided. Then Milwaukee Ballet will move forward with the recommendations of the local Health Department.

  Q. When can a student return to a Milwaukee Ballet Facility after illness?
  A. A student can return to MBSA classes or other events if an alternate cause of illness has been found and treated (such as strep throat, mono, kidney infection, asthma problems). Milwaukee Ballet may request a doctor’s note prior to student’s return.

  If a student tests positive for COVID-19, all of the following are required before the student’s return:

  • at least 5 days have passed since symptom onset or positive test result, and
  • at least 24 hours have passed since resolution of fever without the use of fever-reducing medications, and
  • other symptoms have improved, and
  • remain masked for full ten days, but may unmask starting Day 11.

  Q. What if you have symptoms but do not test positive?
  A. Questionable symptoms with a negative COVID-19 test would allow students to return to class.

• Frequently Asked Questions | Part 2

  Q. How long do I need to stay home if I tested positive OR if a doctor said I likely have COVID-19?
  A. If you/your student have symptoms, stay at home until all of the following have occurred:

  • At least 5 days have passed since their symptoms started,
  • No fever (100.4’F or greater) present for at least 24 hours without using any medications to lower the fever, and
  • Other symptoms have improved.

  Q. What if I tested positive for COVID-19, but don’t show symptoms?
  A. Please immediately notify the School Office at 414-902-2100 (during business hours) or via the COVID-19 Hotline at 414-334-1114 (outside of business hours). You should stay home 5 days after the day you were tested, mask for 10 days, and keep away from others as much as possible. Even if you currently have no symptoms, you can still spread the virus or develop symptoms later on.

  Q. What should I do if I have been asked to get a test?
  A. Please immediately notify the School Office at 414-902-2100 (during business hours) or via the COVID-19 Hotline at 414-334-1114 (outside of business hours). Be sure to test in the appropriate window. If you are currently symptomatic, please test immediately. When awaiting test results, do not attend classes. If you have tested positive, follow up with the School Office immediately.

  Q. What if I have been in contact with a confirmed case outside of any Milwaukee Ballet facility?
  A. If you were informed that you were a close contact, start the following precautions immediately:

  • Wear a high-quality mask as soon you you find out about the exposure. Day 0 is the date of exposure. Day 1 is the first full day after the last exposure.
  • Continue to mask indoors and in public for 10 full days, as you can still develop COVID-19 up to 10 days after exposure.
  • Watch for symptoms including fever over 100.4 F, cough, and shortness of breath.
  • If you develop symptoms, isolate immediately, get tested, and stay home until you know the test result.
  • If symptoms do not develop, still get tested on Day 6.
    • Negative test – continue precautions through Day 10. Return on Day 11 or later.
    • Positive test – isolate immediately for at least 5 days, continue to wear a mask, monitor symptoms, and follow any other guidance from the local Health Department.

• Cleaning Protocols

  Milwaukee Ballet is implementing CDC recommendations for cleaning and disinfecting a facility.

  High-touch areas are regularly cleaned and disinfected. Ballet barres and studio floors are cleaned and disinfected daily and as needed.

  Sanitizing stations are installed throughout the building, including at main entrances, in hallways, and inside studios.

  Our HVAC system is a Variable Air Volume (VAV) system that keeps our building at 40-60% humidity, allows additional in-flow and exhaust in our studios, and isolation of studios if required. Air filters have been improved to MERV13.

• Response Protocols

  If a student is identified as symptomatic during the program, they will be promptly isolated away from other students, faculty and staff.

  The student’s parents/guardians will be advised immediately, and they will be required to leave the building as soon as possible (unless emergency medical services required).

  The student and family will seek medical care on their own.

  Those considered in “close contact” with the student will be advised, including their class group. Close contact is defined by CDC as being within 6 feet of an infected person for more than 15 minutes total, regardless of masking. Close contact generally does not include brief interactions, such as walking past a person.
  Classes may be immediately suspended as a matter of safety, pending further details.

  Milwaukee Ballet will notify local health officials to determine a course of action, including duration of potential isolation.

  The student who is symptomatic cannot return to the program until they have completed a 5-day quarantine and are no longer exhibiting symptoms.

  The building will be deep cleaned within the period of time deemed acceptable by local health officials.

Questions?