<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family:tahoma,sans-serif"><span id="gmail-docs-internal-guid-56f7ee4a-7fff-1ffb-7f77-b07f7d8482f5"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Colleagues,</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I have been fielding a number of private emails from faculty teaching f2f this fall, and I thought it might be helpful to send out a note that shares information more widely than the individual responses I have sent.  Moving forward, please send any questions you may have to <a href="mailto:provost-office@plattsburgh.edu">provost-office@plattsburgh.edu</a>, and I will answer them as quickly and accurately as I can.  </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Here are some questions that have come to me privately:</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">1.) Should there be content added to my syllabus related to COVID safety requirements this fall?</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I would recommend that anyone teaching in-person classes add language that confirms our COVID19 fall 2021 restart policies (posted on our homepage, tab at the top) with specific focus on the classroom expectations: </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><a href="https://www.plattsburgh.edu/covid-19/index.html" style="text-decoration-line:none"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;text-decoration-line:underline;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">https://www.plattsburgh.edu/covid-19/index.html</span></a><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">  From my perspective, including this language on the syllabus and reminding students of the college's and your expectations for compliance would be valuable reinforcement from teaching faculty.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">2.) Are faculty members responsible for enforcing social distancing within the classroom?</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Since vaccination status (or exemption status) is protected information, employees (and faculty members) cannot ask whether an individual is vaccinated or not.  Faculty will not have the information they would need to take any such responsibility in the classroom, and so the answer is "no."  Faculty are not responsible for enforcing social distancing in the classroom.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">We are all required to mask *indoors* beginning on Monday, 8/23/21 and will continue to do so through the first two weeks of the classes (per an earlier announcement).  We have the ability to dial back on masking for vaccinated individuals if our local infection rate is low.  The infection rate has been rising locally (and yet it is still quite low), and with so many individuals returning to campus from many corners of NY (and outside of NY), the decision was made to begin the semester with maximum caution around masking.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">If you have students who are not masking properly during class, University Police can be contacted at Ext. 5555.  This would also be the case about anyone whom you encounter inside buildings on campus.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">3.) Can I safely keep an office hour appointment with one student in my office?  </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">If your office will not accommodate 6 feet of social distancing, and the student has not voluntarily shared their status, you should only meet in your office if 6 feet of social distancing can be managed and both student and faculty member remain masked.  If there is a large conference room available that faculty can reserve for office hours, this could be an option because of the additional space.  Additionally, we have Zoom access once again.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">4.) What about department meetings?  Can the department faculty meet together in our conference room?</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Only if you could assure the availability of 6 feet of social distancing for any faculty member who may be present who needs to socially distance.  As with last year, we have access to Zoom for meetings when we cannot be confident about meeting college safety policies.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">5.) Do we know what percentage of students are currently vaccinated?</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Students must be vaccinated to reside on campus.  We have good data on this population of students: 72% of them have provided documentation of being vaccinated and another 12% are "in process."  Our Housing office is reaching out constantly to those who have not responded to earlier requests for their status, and most definitely, as students arrive on campus, they will not be able to access housing without evidence of vaccination.  </span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">6.) Why were the classroom enrollments set with 3 feet of social distancing?</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">We had to make a decision about the classroom enrollment caps in early spring--long before recent guidance from the CDC or SUNY.  At that time, the only guidance in place was for K-12 settings, where one would not expect as much personal responsibility for sitting in a particular space during classes because the students are not adults.  While we have returned all of the seats that were in storage to our classrooms, the classroom enrollments were retained for 3 feet of social distancing.  In terms of my provost colleagues at other Comprehensives, they have reported that all of their classes are set up for full capacity--no restrictions at all in number.  I am glad that we planned for the 3 feet and lower caps because with the high vaccination percentages we expect, there should not be challenges in our classrooms for social distancing, when needed.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">7.)  Point of information that may be helpful: Last year, there was only a single infection transmission that we are aware of in a class, where students were working on a project with a faculty member, close-up and un-masked.  The classroom was not a place of transmission.  Transmission took place in sorority activities, fraternity activities, athletes, living spaces, and socializing.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Some other information that is relevant to our fall start-up:  SUNY has just this week released a Vaccination Management Tool that will gather vaccination status for every enrolled student in the SUNY system.  Up to this point this summer, our Health Center has been gathering information, but this was by voluntary submission.  The SUNY tool will now enable our campus to communicate with every enrolled student here at Plattsburgh, and current information will be uploaded and cross-checked with NY State Health vaccination data.  This management system will help us access updated vaccination data on students who will not be living on campus.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Our campus has also planned 4 vaccination clinics for students who did not get vaccinated before they arrive: 8/20, 8/26, 8/27, and 9/1.  These clinics are planned for various times of the days to maximize access to students who want to take advantage of the clinics.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Per the posted policy online, anyone who is unvaccinated (students, faculty, staff) must be tested weekly here on campus.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">I hope this information is helpful to you all.  We are in new territory, once again, just like last fall, where we have to make decisions that we have not made before with information that is not always full or clear enough.  Please know that I and the entire leadership team are doing our best to take care of everyone on our campus this fall while still providing an excellent learning and campus experience for our students.</span></p><br><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Sincerely,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;vertical-align:baseline;white-space:pre-wrap">Anne</span></p><br></span></div></div>