Today's Update: Tuesday, September 29

September 29, 2020

Dear Student Life Team, I recently talked about our programming for students in quarantine and isolation housing. We tend to get a lot of questions about the mechanics of this process, so today I want to give you an overview. 

First the definitions. Quarantine is for those who are believed to have come into contact with someone who has the virus. Because students may be asymptomatic but still have COVID, it is important that they are away from the rest of the community to prevent further spread. Isolation is for those who have tested positive.  

We currently have three dedicated on-campus buildings and two interconnected off-campus properties where we house on-campus residential students who have tested positive (isolation) and students who have been identified as a close contact of a positive case (quarantine).  

Throughout all of these spaces, we have about 600 spots for isolation and another 360 for quarantine. A feature of the daily tracking dashboard is showcasing the occupied and available quarantine and isolation spaces on any given day. 

Over time, we’ve continued to expand the programming and support aspects for students in quarantine and/or isolation. And, as we continue to revise and evolve our processes, we have been able to create a relatively smooth process, including the migration of data management into the existing StarRez system. 

Even though we have grown our programming and support, being in isolation or quarantine is a significant disruption to a student’s semester. Depending on the path of the virus and exposure levels, some students could ultimately be assigned multiple times. The more we can successfully encourage students to comply with safe and healthy guidelines, the better our chances of success. 

As I mentioned in a High Five Friday message, from setting up the rooms to staffing the buildings to providing special activities for the residents to checking up on them with calls and emails to providing their meals to every other aspect of this remarkable effort....I simply cannot say enough about the engagement of everyone involved, and it is literally hundreds of people. 

It is a huge, and Scarlet and Great, effort.  

Melissa