Wellness Policy & Covid Requirements

Policy for Students

Introduction:

Safety is a high priority at PHAME, and we acknowledge that our student body includes many people with medical conditions that make getting sick dangerous. Because of this, our safety policies are sometimes more restrictive than what you will find at other organizations. Thank you for understanding and for helping us keep our community safe.

Wellness Policy:

By signing up for in-person classes, you agree to stay home if you have Covid or any other illness that can easily pass to people around you, like a cold or the flu. Anyone with Covid must avoid the PHAME campus until they are feeling better AND they have stayed home for the appropriate number of days (see FAQ below). Please let us know if you test positive and were recently on campus.

If you are recovering from recent illness and are still showing symptoms, such as a lingering cough or runny nose, please wear a high-quality mask when on campus. Check with a Campus Coordinator if you have questions about whether or not you need a mask, or if you need guidance on what kinds of masks are acceptable.

Covid Safety Measures & Mask-O-Meter:

PHAME monitors Covid levels in our area and in our student body. If local transmission rates and/or hospitalizations rise, or if significant exposure occurs on campus, PHAME may require more safety measures (including masks) upon entering any building where PHAME programming is being held. In extreme circumstances, we may move classes online.

Because our safety measures change depending on Covid rates, we communicate our current safety measures by updating our Mask-O-Meter, which has four colors defined as follows:

Green: Masks optional; no health screening.
Yellow: Masks required; light health screening questions upon arrival.
Red: Masks required; more extensive health screening upon arrival; physical distancing practiced; modification of higher-risk behaviors such as singing in small spaces.
Blue: PHAME campus closed temporarily and classes moved to meeting online; students alerted via phone.

Students are welcome to check the Mask-O-Meter graphic on this page, which is updated weekly during term. However we will also email all in-person students when the color changes, and will keep masks on hand for any student who needs one.

Vaccination Requirements:

Updated 11/13/23: Beginning Winter Term 2024, PHAME will no longer require proof of vaccination for Covid. We strongly encourage everyone in our community to be vaccinated for both Covid and the flu, and to stay up to date as new vaccines become available.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Click the + sign to view the answer.

Please email Alex at ageffel@phamepdx.org. They will want to know what day you first had symptoms, what day you tested positive, and the severity of your symptoms. They will help you make a plan for when you can return to PHAME.
If you do not feel comfortable discussing your symptoms with Alex, you will be asked to stay home until ten days have passed since your positive test.
That depends on what symptoms you had.

• If you had absolutely no symptoms, you may return to PHAME after staying home for five days. Please wear a high-quality mask at PHAME until 10 days have passed since your positive test.

• If you had mild or moderate symptoms (worse than mild), you may return to PHAME after staying home for 10 days. Please wear a high-quality mask at PHAME if you still have any symptoms.

• If you had severe symptoms, or if you were hospitalized, please speak with your healthcare provider and PHAME staff before returning to PHAME.
• If you do not want to tell PHAME about your symptoms, you may return to PHAME after staying home for 10 days. However you will need to wear a high-quality mask at PHAME if you still have any symptoms.

Alex Geffel will help you determine whether your symptoms qualify as none, mild, moderate, or severe. Please contact them at ageffel@phamepdx.org.
If you are symptom-free, you can continue coming to PHAME, but you must wear a mask when on campus and you must agree to take a Covid test five days after being exposed. If you have symptoms, please stay home until five days have passed, at which point you can take a test.
Yes, you can continue to come to PHAME. Please monitor yourself for symptoms.
Our masking requirement changes based on local Covid rates, as well as exposures on our campus. That means it is always possible that our Mask-O-Meter level will rise to yellow or higher, and masks will be required. If masks are required, and you don’t feel comfortable wearing a mask, you will need to skip your in-person classes until the mask requirement is dropped, and you will not get a refund for missed classes.
Grace church has MERV13 filtration throughout and classrooms have virus-level air purifiers. The Reser and Pacific Crest have high-level filtration as well. PHAME will bring a portable air purifier to any campus building that does not already have a good air filtration system in place.
Guests are expected to comply with the same wellness and Covid policies listed for students.