We have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic over the past 2 ½ years by making the best decisions possible with the best information we have available. We have trusted in God for protection and wisdom and have relied on our community health partners for advice and knowledge. Students have cooperated well with our policies and faculty and staff have modeled good practices in facing this pandemic. It appears that we are going to be experiencing some variant of the coronavirus as a “normal” dimension of our lives together on campus. Outbreaks seem to be inevitable and, therefore, we want to take the following precautions to keep our campuses as safe as possible:

• Get vaccinated and boosted: this remains the best protection against contracting the virus or experiencing severe symptoms. You can get vaccinated at any local CVS or Walgreens clinic/pharmacy, or at your local health department. Click here to search for the vaccination locations nearest you.
• Continue to practice the “Five Core Actions” critical to reducing COVID-19 spread: social distancing when possible, wearing a face mask at appropriate times, washing your hands often, using disinfectant to foster a clean environment, and staying at home if you are sick.
• Bring test kits with you to campus (or have them delivered to campus): free test kits are available online and there are also affordable options available on Amazon if you have already used your free kits. Our health services office will continue to have kits available for those who do not have their own.
• The CDC recommends that if you have been exposed to COVID-19, you should wear an N95 or K95 mask for 10 days and get tested on day 5; that if you test positive for COVID at any point you should isolate for at least 5 days and, even if you are fever- and symptom-free after day 5, wear a mask until day 10. In addition, students who become sick should notify people they have been in contact with; quarantine of contacts may be optional, with the exception of roommates; if wise and possible, students may choose to go home to isolate; the University will still provide spaces for isolation and meal delivery if necessary.
• Increased protocols are always a possibility in the event of increased spread of the virus; we will monitor our campuses carefully and follow the best advice of our local health officials; we remain flexible in our response to local circumstances regarding COVID-19.