Staffing, Supervision & Safety

The counselors for the Tennessee School for the Deaf (TSD) camps are all TSD staff members fluent in sign language and selected for their ability to work with children. Each has experience with adventure programming and team building as well as knowledge in safety protocols. Effort is made to have a balance of hearing and deaf staff from both the residential and instructional programs. All new staff members are fingerprinted and FBI background checks have been performed.

The student to staff ratio is no more than 5:1 for the Junior and Senior camps and 3:1 for Camp Courage. The campers are supervised 24 hours a day.

Safety of the children participating in the TSD summer camps is the top priority. TSD strives to minimize risk while offering experiences that often encourage stepping outside comfort zones as part of an attempt to enhance self esteem. Examples include white water rafting, climbing walls, caving, and mountain biking.

The TSD Clinic is staffed 24 hours a day by at least one registered nurse while students are on campus. The nurses are responsible for distributing medications and are trained to handle minor medical emergencies. When activities take place off campus, one staff person is assigned responsibility for the medications and logging as they are administered. First-aid kits are mandatory equipment for any trip off campus. Many of the staff members are CPR and First-Aid certified.

All activities and field trips involving water are supervised by at least one American Red Cross certified lifeguard. Each camper in or around water other than swimming pools is required to wear an approved personal flotation device (PFD). Swimming ability is checked at the beginning of camp and supervision assigned accordingly.