From the Dean: Public Health and Safety Updates

October 2, 2020

Dear Students, Faculty, and Staff:

The Public Health and Safety Team met this morning to discuss and finalize some new protocols. Please take a few minutes to read through and understand these changes:

• Faculty, staff, and students are now permitted to hold in-person meetings on campus. Anyone attending an in-person meeting is required to follow health and safety protocols, which include wearing a mask, maintaining a physical distance of 6 feet, and observing room occupancy limitations. In particular, the Board Room (2000 Building), and Room 117 (1928 Building) are good options, as those are not being used for classes. Similar to our student group protocols announced last week, we still encourage virtual meetings, and ask that those meeting in person provide for remote access by colleagues who cannot be on campus.
• As stated in the Return to Campus Plan, all fall-semester classes after the Thanksgiving break will be held remotely. However, assuming the incidence of COVID remains low in the Capital Region, we plan to open law school buildings and classrooms for student, faculty, and staff use through the last day of classes on December 4. After that, during the reading and exam period, access will be restricted to the library, the foyers, the cafeteria, and student, faculty, and staff offices.
• For individuals who plan to be on campus after Thanksgiving: We will require anyone who travels outside the Capital Region during the break to self-isolate for 72 hours and provide documentation of a negative COVID-19 test before returning to campus. Tests will be available at ACPHS.  Guidance is forthcoming. Please be advised that the Governor's Executive Order on traveling to and from states on the quarantine list will also apply, meaning that individuals who travel to states on the list will need to quarantine for 14 days before returning to campus.

As a reminder: if you are selected for surveillance testing, we ask that you respond and participate. I want to assure you that individuals are selected for testing using a program that selects participants randomly; the test itself is a "self swab" and is far less invasive than the test you may have experienced at a state site.  Surveillance testing is an important part of how the law school is keeping its in-person community safe. If you have any concerns or questions about our surveillance testing program, please reach out to me directly.  I am happy to talk one on one, or to hold a larger town hall session if there is interest.

Thanks to your continued vigilance, we are able to make available more opportunities while maintaining the health and safety of our community. Let's keep it up.

All my best,

Alicia Ouellette
President and Dean