MVICW’s goal is to host the safest possible in-person conference for both our attendees and the island community. For this reason, we will be taking extra measures to ensure your safety, and are requiring vaccinations, masking, and rapid-testing to participate in this year’s Summer Writers’ Conference.

 

To keep MVICW attendees and the conference as safe as possible, attendees to our 2022 Summer Writers’ Conference must:

1. Be fully vaccinated at least 2 weeks prior to attending

2. Take a rapid test upon check-in at the Vineyard Arts Project

3. Wear masks in all MVICW venue spaces during the conference

 

MVICW asks all attendees to follow regulations and to make informed choices about travel, conducting yourself onsite, and your engagement with external venues and groups while in Massachusetts.

We continue to monitor the evolving situation regarding COVID-19 in relation to large gatherings. We will provide updates as guidance from the CDC, state, and local public health recommendations change. 

 

Thank you in advance for your commitment to following the health and safety protocols and protecting your fellow attendees. 

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MVICW COVID Policy & Liability Waiver

Vaccination

Rapid-Testing

Masking

Travel

Events

Compliance

Registration Cancellation

Exception Policy

​Liability Waiver

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Vaccination

Attendees of our 2022 Summer Writers' Conference must be fully vaccinated with a CDC- or WHO-authorized COVID-19 vaccine. Specific instructions about the process for providing your vaccination information will be posted soon.

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​To be considered fully vaccinated, you must receive the second dose of a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine or the only dose of a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine no later than May 15, 2022, in order to attend on May 29, 2022. If you need help finding a vaccine, we encourage you to check out https://www.vaccines.gov. If you have lost your proof of vaccination, visit your state health department’s website, many of which keep vaccinations records.

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Rapid-Testing

All attendees will be asked to take a rapid-test upon arrival/check-in at The Vineyard Arts Project. The rapid-test takes ten minutes, and must produce a negative result in order for attendees to check in to their rooms or attend the week’s events. Rapid tests will also be available throughout the conference for attendees who exhibit COVID-like symptoms. In the case of a positive test, attendees agree to immediately seek further testing at the closest medical facility, and understand that they will not be able to attend events until a negative test is established.  If an attendee tests positive for COVID, they understand that they will be issued a full refund for the conference/lodging and will not be able to remain in the program/on-site to ensure the safety of all. 

 

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Masking

Wearing a mask is required in all MVICW venues. Masks are required regardless of vaccination status. For the sake of everyone’s comfort, masks are required in shared living areas such as kitchens, living rooms, and communal spaces at the Vineyard Arts Project lodging.

 

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Travel

MVICW requests that all attendees and MVICW staff comply with all travel guidelines issued by the CDC when traveling to Martha's Vineyard, MA. For the safety of all, we also encourage attendees to wear masks at external venues/groups while visiting Martha’s Vineyard.

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Events

For in-person events, we will have distanced seating options available and capacity maximums in each session room. Speakers will be placed six feet away from the first row of seats to accommodate speakers who may want to remove their mask while they are actively speaking during their conference event. We have made this masking exception for presenter comfort and speech clarity and for those who may need to lip read. Microphones and head tables will be sanitized between events.​

 

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Compliance

All attendees of the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers’ Conference must comply with all COVID-19 health and safety precautions and policies. If you are found to be in violation of any of these policies, you will be removed from the conference venue(s) with no refund.

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Registration Cancellation

If you are an attendee who has tested positive for COVID-19 in the month leading up to the conference, we ask that you immediately notify us and not attend the conference. If this applies to you, please let us know, and with proof of your positive test result, we will provide a full refund. Please note it may take up to three weeks to receive a credit in your account.

 

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Exception Policy

For attendees with a disability that would prevent them from being vaccinated or from wearing a mask safely for a long period of time, please reach out to our director, Alexander Weinstein, for possible medical exceptions and accommodations at director@mvicw.com. 

 

 

Liability Waiver

While we at MVICW are doing all we can to reduce risk for onsite attendance, MVICW cannot guarantee there is no risk of contracting COVID-19 while attending the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference. All in-person attendees must agree to the following liability waiver, included in our registration Terms & Conditions.

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​Attendee assumes all risks and accepts sole responsibility for any injury (including, but not limited to: personal injury, disability, and death), illness, damage, loss, claim, liability, or expense of any kind that attendee may experience or incur in connection with attending the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference. Attendee hereby releases, covenants not to sue, discharges, and holds harmless the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference, its employees, agents, and representatives, of and from any such claims, including all liabilities, claims, actions, damages, costs, or expenses of any kind arising out of or relating thereto.

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​Specifically relating to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the attendee acknowledges the highly contagious nature of COVID-19 and voluntarily assumes the risk of exposure or infection by attending the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference, and that such exposure or infection may result in personal injury, illness, disability, and/or death to attendee. Attendee understands the risk of becoming exposed to or infected by COVID-19 at the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference may result from the actions, omissions, or negligence of others who may attend the event or their families, colleagues, or others with whom they may have contact. Accordingly, attendee understands and agrees that this release includes any claims based on the actions, omissions or negligence of the MVICW, its employees, agents, and representatives, whether a COVID-19 infection occurs before, during, or after participation in the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference.

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​In addition to all other rules and regulations relating to the attendee’s attendance at the MVICW 2022 Summer Writers' Conference, the attendee agrees to comply with all COVID-related procedures that may be implemented by MVICW, the Vineyard Arts Project, and the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce, including, but not limited to, mask-wearing and social distancing requirements and restrictions on certain activities that carry higher COVID-related risk, in order to protect as much as possible the health and safety of all conference attendees.