Coronavirus (COVID-19) Information

Culver’s in-person Commencement ceremony for the Class of 2020 is scheduled for Sunday, May 30, 2021. An online Commencement was held on May 31, 2020. The ceremony is available here.

The Live the Legacy Auction, scheduled for October 2, has been cancelled

Parents Weekend, scheduled for October 3-4, has been cancelled.

Culver Academies has reduced the duration of our traditional Thanksgiving Break from 10 days to five days. As such, the campus will remain open during Thanksgiving Break. It is Culver Academies’ intent to close the campus for the duration of the Winter Break, Dec. 19, 2020 to Jan. 17, 2021. We understand and appreciate that many families would prefer to keep their students in the United States during Winter Break, and we are currently looking into options to help support families trying to find a solution to this challenge.

Culver Academies is taking a layered approach to safety this school year. No single element of our plan will eliminate risk, but taken together our protocols will significantly decrease COVID-19 related risk on campus. Specifically, the school will focus on routine, weekly testing of all students, staff, and faculty for the active COVID-19 coronavirus; increase our cleaning procedures; mandate the wearing of masks at all times on campus unless in their own personal space (own dorm/barracks room) or when seated at the Dining Hall or Shack.

Academic safety guidelines can be found here.

Yes. Most Indiana high schools are allowing fans to attend sporting events. Some are not, but most are. If you choose to attend a sporting event, we ask that you wear a mask and practice social distancing when interacting with your son or daughter after the game. We also ask that you respect the fact that this visit will be short in nature (5 to 10 minutes). Thank you in advance for your cooperation. 

Upon arrival to Culver’s campus all staff, faculty, and students will be tested for the COVID-19 virus using a peripheral nasal swab in a rapid testing machine. Additionally, we will be implementing weekly testing protocols for all staff, faculty, and students throughout the school year, regardless of whether they have previously tested positive. The weekly testing frequency enables Culver to monitor and remove any students and staff and faculty members who test positive for COVID-19 in order to reduce the risk of transmission across campus. Additionally, the staff will be wearing protective masks while indoors, just like the students, as we navigate COVID-19 this school year.

The test Culver will use is a peripheral swab of both nostrils, not the nasopharyngeal swab (the deep nasal probe).

In order to give the campus time to adjust to frequent COVID-19 testing, students will not be allowed to take any Parental Overnight Leave (PONL), weekday or weekend town privileges, permits, or weekend leave (WEL) for the first six weeks. We ask that students remain on campus for six weeks before they depart for a weekend away so we can establish a baseline number/percentage of students who contract COVID-19 in order to drive decisions regarding loosening or tightening restrictions as the school year progresses.

On “school nights” (Sunday through Thursday), students’ cell phones will be collected no later than taps (11 p.m.) for secure storage overnight. The phones will be returned shortly after reveille (7:20 a.m.) the following morning. As part of our robust plan to ensure Culver can educate students in-person this school year, we are protecting our students’ sleep, their optimal health, and their ability to fight off illness.  In the event of an emergency, students can be contacted 24/7 while on campus via the Security Office (574-842-4088) or Officer in Charge desk at Main Guard (574-842-8324).

If conditions support this measure, which we anticipate they will, students will be allowed to take one PONL, permit, or WEL per term after the first six weeks of school, starting the first weekend in October.

Yes, students will be eating in the Dining Hall. The team at the Dining Hall, who will be tested on a weekly basis, continues to plan and prepare for students’ return to campus in August, adjusting their meal preparation and serving methods to reduce risk. Further protocols will be communicated at a later date and as situations warrant.

Based on our continued analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic, Culver Academies is adjusting some protocols to protect our students and community in the best manner possible due to the recent resurgence of COVID-19 prevalence across the United States. In light of these conditions, events at Culver Academies will be closed to the public; there will be no spectators or visitors to campus for sporting events, commissioning, matriculation, ringing ceremony, Dean England Day Ceremony, parades, family visits, etc. We will live stream or record for later viewing as many events as possible so you can observe the great work your students are doing on campus. These protocols will be in place for the first six weeks of the school year until we have the opportunity to reassess the full scope of the situation on campus. Parents will still be allowed to take their students home for one sign-out (weekend leave, parental overnight leave, town privilege, or permit) per term starting the first weekend of October. Culver Academies will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and adjust protocols as necessary throughout the school year with the best interests of our students in mind.

The Health Center has been busy since March preparing for many different COVID-19 contingencies to enable a safe return to residential instruction. This includes establishing a COVID-only wing in the Health Center and a specific testing location. To further reduce risk, students will be required to receive the annual flu shot, which will be administered by the Health Center staff the first week of October. Students will remain in the Health Center until they are COVID free, which we expect to be roughly 7-14 days

Students in close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID, typically a roommate, will be COVID tested as soon as possible. If they test positive, they will go to the Health Center. If they test negative, they will go to a separate location for 72-96 hours and then take a second COVID test; the second negative COVID test will enable them to return to residential instruction.

If a student is required to quarantine due to COVID-19, their academic program will be supported via online classes with their instructor and classmates for the duration of their stay at the Health Center or quarantine location.

Our Health Center will treat all students that contract COVID-19. If their symptoms are beyond our scope of care, which we do not anticipate for most students who test positive, we will send them to a local hospital for further care.

We don’t have a specific algorithm designed for this yet, but it is part of our planning and process. We do have approval from the Indiana Department of Health Director, Dr. Kris Box, to continue operations even when Culver has positive COVID-19 cases on campus in our Health Center, similar to the guidelines for colleges and universities in Indiana.

Unlike previous years, the campus will be open during Thanksgiving break. Culver currently does not plan to be open for winter break or the first 7-10 days of spring break. Students can make arrangements with friends or stay with their stateside point of contact during these shut down periods.

Guidelines for international students can be found here.

Guidelines for parents for international students can be found here.

Yes. Culver Academies’ leadership team has been working hard to ensure that we meet the educational and developmental needs of all of our students, regardless of their location when classes resume on Aug. 18. The online programming model has been upgraded significantly, taking into account the lessons learned for the final term of the 2020 school year, enabling us to deliver a hybrid learning model that will provide a robust learning experience until your student is able to join us here at Culver.

No. If your student is able to travel to and enter the United States, then Culver’s COVID-19 testing and safety protocols satisfy the U.S. government’s current requirements for a quarantine for people traveling from China, Iran, the EU’s Schengen Area, the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, and Brazil.

It is helpful for students to have a stateside point of contact in case events outside of our control necessitate a major change to our plans, such as having to close campus and transition to full online programming like Culver had to do in March 2020.

Yes. The international medical insurance covers COVID-19 related illnesses and hospitalizations once your student enters the United States.

Families will initially be charged the full cost of attending Culver Academies for the 2020-2021 school year, and you will be reimbursed for room and board on a pro-rated basis for the time your student was not on campus once they arrive at Culver.

All of our international students will be asked to have a stateside family member or representative who will take them in if the school is forced to close again due to COVID-19 or some other event outside of Culver’s control.

Please feel free to contact Tony Giraldi (tony.giraldi@culver.org, office 574-842-8332, cell 574-210-7941 or through WeChat/WhatsApp), Karla Hernandez (karla.hernandez@culver.org, office 574-842-8119, cell 574-248-0680 or WhatsApp), or Cathy Tulungen (Catherine.tulungen@culver.org) with any questions or concerns.

With the desire to remain strong and healthy -- physically, socially, spiritually, and mentally -- Culver is providing opportunities to assist students and families during this unique time. Among them are:

All students and employees/family members have free membership to the PLT4M workout software. These workouts can be done remotely for home use, and challenge all ability levels. Video demonstrations to familiarize yourself with workout language is included.

a. Download the app or website: PLT4M

b. Use Join Code: SCWILK

c. Join the group: REMOTE FITNESS

d. Follow the daily and weekly prompts to access the workouts

e. Any questions, contact Coach Sandy Orsund at Sandy.Orsund@Culver.org.

Monday through Friday, we will provide daily outdoor activity ideas to do with your family, or close circle of friends, all starting from your own yards. They will include bike rides, walks, games and a weekly Wednesday scavenger hunts. If you have outdoor activities to share with the group, email Dana.Neer@Culver.org. Stay connected by posting your pictures using #culvercomestogether and #findculver to share your activities.

Pastoral counseling available from Dr. Boys and Pastor Dan. Email for appointments.

Culver is committed to honoring the class of 2020, both at Woodcraft and Upper Schools. We have contacted families with additional details. In the meantime, our staff will look at the situation of each camper to determine if they could return in 2021 to complete their Culver Summer Schools & Camps experience.

If you received a financial aid package for 2020, you will need to apply again for the summer of 2021. While we are unable to guarantee the same award, we will continue to do our best to make Culver accessible to our families.