Student Update December 29, 2021

After a busy Fall semester, we were all ready for some time with friends and families over the holidays.  As we approach the campus opening on Monday, January 3, I suspect you have seen the Baylor announcement to their campus and have questions about how COVID-19, and particularly the Omicron variant, will affect our returning to campus.  With daily COVID-19 cases reaching a new record yesterday, we all have many concerns.    

Frank Patterson, our Emergency Operations Center (EOC) team leader, has been in contact with experts, including the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District, and has been monitoring how the virus may affect our operations.  Some of what we know is that:

• Omicron is highly transmissible;
• COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters are extremely important for protection against serious infection resulting from Omicron; and
• Omicron cases appear – at least at this point – to be less severe, especially among the vaccinated and particularly among the boosted.
• Omicron has the potential to cause widespread employee and student absences, which can disrupt operations and classes. 

The EOC team has continued to monitor the situation and will make recommendations early next week.  For now, we are planning the following:

• Campus will open on January 3.
• Campus testing for employees and students as currently structured will continue, possibly with extended hours. Information and a scheduling tool is available on the COVID-19 webpage.
• We will continue our partnership with the Health District and will again offer community testing in Parking Lot M, which will begin Monday, January 3.
• Face coverings remain an important tool for decreasing the transmission of COVID-19.
• New guidance from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) that reduces the quarantine period is under consideration.
• As we have done throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, faculty will be ready to transition to virtual classes as needed.
• Request that students do daily self-assessments and self-report if they have symptoms, have tested positive for COVID-19 or have been exposed. Students should not come to campus if they are sick or have any COVID-19 symptoms. 

In the meantime, I hope you will enjoy the remainder of our break, that you will stay safe, and that you will consider vaccination and boosters if you are not fully vaccinated.     

Again, you will hear something more specific next week regarding any changes in decisions for the Spring 2022 Semester which is scheduled to begin January 10, 2022.  My commitment, and that of the Vice Presidents, is for a safe campus, with the hope for an appropriate mix of virtual and in-person instruction and support.  

Sincerely,