Recent News
Share thisMessage to Students From the Roberts Restart Team
Roberts and Northeastern Students,
Greetings from the Roberts Restart Team. With the many changes happening related to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are committed to keeping the campus informed about changes both to our campus operations and to local and state guidelines. There are several items of note this month.
Monroe County Positivity Rate and Campus Alert Level Change. Thank you for your quick response this week to our alert level change on campus. We are now at a Yellow alert on campus. While we still have a very limited number of cases on our campus, the designation of the Rochester area as a microcluster by NYS required this change. We know that the operational changes required at this level were difficult for some of you. Thank you for making these necessary changes to maintain a healthy campus as we look forward to the end of a successful Fall semester.
While we hope to begin the Spring semester on time and on campus in January, our ability to do so will depend on how well the Rochester region is able to get the rising Covid-19 cases under control. If our region moves to an orange or red zone designation, we may not be able to hold in-person classes for a time. The Restart Team continues to monitor both our campus cases and the greater region and will keep the campus informed about any changes. Thank you for your hard work this semester to keep our campus safe and healthy.
Updated Guidelines for Travelers. On November 4, new travel guidelines in New York went into effect. Rather than a list of restricted states, all travelers from states other than CT, MA, NJ, PA, or VT must take precautionary measures to limit the spread of Covid-19 in the state. The new guidelines allow a person to either (1) complete a 14-day quarantine upon return to the state, or (2) test out of quarantine by receiving two negative Covid-19 diagnostic tests seven days apart, one prior to returning to the state and one after a three day quarantine period after return. If you live or are planning to travel outside of NY, CT, MA, NJ, PA, or VT, please plan accordingly. Read more about the NY travel guidelines at https://coronavirus.health.ny.
Giving Thanks. We have much to be thankful for this fall. As a Restart Team, we are thankful to be navigating this uncertain time with you all. In our recent faculty, staff, and student surveys, we were reminded of the great blessing it is to work at Roberts, and we are thankful for your hard work that has made this semester a success.
In this season of giving thanks, you may be considering how to celebrate the upcoming holidays this year. The CDC has offered some helpful tips on celebrating safely this year. In addition, the Human Resources Team and the Counseling Center have put together the attached resource to maintain spiritual, physical, and emotional wellness during the holidays.We hope these resources are helpful to you, and that you find moments of rest during this season.
Testing. There have been a few questions about making testing available on campus before Thanksgiving. Though we are not required to test, we are working with the state to get test kits that would allow students to get tested and receive results before leaving campus. We will have more information in the coming days. Testing is also currently available at Monroe Community College.
Planning for Spring. Though we have several weeks left in the fall semester, Restart has been busy planning for spring. At this time, we anticipate the current guidelines continuing into the Spring 2021 semester with a phased-in approach to beginning the semester, much as we did in the fall. Other announcements about testing before returning to campus and additional strategies to ensure a safe return in the spring will be forthcoming.
If you have questions about our campus Covid-19 guidelines, please contact me or any member of the Restart team. You can submit questions to the Restart team at https://www.roberts.edu/
Kristen Brown, For the Roberts Restart Team
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