Health and Safety | Hidden Villa

For the 2023 summer, Hidden Villa Summer Camp is prioritizing the health and safety of our campers and staff by going above and beyond to create a culture of health and safety. We strongly encourage all incoming campers to be up to date with vaccinations including COVID-19. Utilizing industry best practices of layered intervention strategies, we have developed the following practices to decrease the risk of COVID-19 in our camp community and beyond:

Vaccination: We strongly encourage all campers to be fully vaccinated to participate in summer camp. (Please note this policy was updated on February 8, 2023). All camp staff is required to be fully vaccinated.

Face Coverings: Currently, face coverings are not required. This may change if Santa Clara County recommends wearing face coverings due to increased COVID-19 community spread.

The Great Outdoors: The vast majority of our program will take place outdoors for the 2023 season to delight in the many benefits of sunshine and fresh air. Campers will enjoy outdoor dining, served by the Epicurean Group.

Screening & Testing: All campers will be expected to go through screening procedures before and during arrival at camp. The procedures may include screening questions and temperature checks. Clear protocols will be in place in the event that a camper or staff member becomes ill.

We are still monitoring the changing pandemic closely and ready to make appropriate safety protocols for our campers and community to mitigate the spread of COVID. This may also mean that certain procedures may change as we get closer to the summer. More detailed information on our camp’s finalized health and safety precautions will be provided to you in your camp enrollment paperwork as we get closer to the start of our season.

Medications

Many campers come to Hidden Villa with medications that they will take throughout their stay here. Please be sure to fill out your camper’s Health Form (available after registration) completely and accurately.

All medications will be checked in on the first day of camp during our check-in process so they can be administered by a trained staff member. This includes over-the-counter medications and supplements. We can only accept medication in its original container and if it has not expired.

Hidden Villa has a well-stocked health room and can provide most over-the-counter medications as needed. If you have questions or concerns about Hidden Villa’s ability to manage your camper’s health or medication needs, please contact the Summer Camp Office.

Allergies

If your youth has a life-threatening allergy, please be sure to note it on the Health Form in your Welcome Packet and discuss it with your program head or the camp nurse during camp check-in. If your camper has a food allergy or more specific food needs, please contact the camp office to see if we can accommodate your youth’s needs.

Mandated Reporting

As an organization that works with youth, Hidden Villa Camp staff are Mandated Reporters. This means that Hidden Villa Camp Staff are required, by law, to report any suspicion of child abuse (physical, emotional, or neglect). Every summer, camp staff participate in a two-hour workshop taught by an official trainer for Santa Clara County, on their legal responsibility as Mandated Reporters, what the various forms of child abuse can look like, and how to respond in the event they have a suspicion of abuse. This is a responsibility we take very seriously and we always act with the best interest of the child in mind.

Bullying

Our goal at Hidden Villa is for every child to have a safe and empowering camp experience. We define safe in physical, emotional, and social terms. Behavior that affects another camper’s experience in a negative way is not acceptable.

Counselors are trained to help campers communicate their needs with one another and build a culture of consent and non-violent communication with their peers and our staff. While staff will intervene if they see behavior that is unsafe, we also want to encourage youth to be active participants in problem-solving and identifying bullying behaviors.

In the event that harmful behaviors cannot be resolved or redirected by our counselors, they will involve a camp supervisor for support, who may then contact guardians to work with families in order to support all our campers. In some cases, a camp supervisor or director may make the decision to send a camper home if intervention does not result in changed behaviors.

You can help your camper be successful at camp by encouraging them to reach out to a staff member if they experience or witness bullying. You can assure them that camp staff is trained to handle such situations in a confidential manner.