Specialized Resources
The spring semester has arrived! To help guide you in your return to campus, please read the following guide about new procedures and policies. And remember, the Path Forward website should be your go-to source for the latest information.
Here are five actions you can take to protect yourself and others from COVID-19:
If you test positive or develop symptoms consistent with COVID-19, you should:
The College’s daily cleaning protocols reflect best practices that reduce the potential for exposure to COVID-19. These protocols include routine disinfection of high-touch surfaces, such as door handles, handrails and elevator buttons in high-traffic, communal-use areas and more frequent cleaning of campus restrooms. More specifically:
Hand sanitizer dispensers have been installed at the entrances to all buildings and high-use areas where hand-washing is not readily available. Offices and departments have been provided cleaning/disinfecting supplies for use in personal work areas, and employees are expected to wipe down work surfaces and equipment routinely before and after use. Cleaning/disinfecting supplies will also be provided in all classrooms with instructions for their use. If additional cleaning supplies are needed, a work request should be placed via Camelweb.
Faculty and staff who are scheduled to work on campus will be tested weekly on a schedule that will be determined based on the number of days they will be on campus.
The Testing Center is located at the Athletic Center on the wood courts. Participants enter this area using the exterior entrance to the wood court (rather than the main Athletic Center entrance).
If you are coming to campus regularly, you must participate in the College’s testing program. Don’t forget to track your symptoms and schedule your tests with the CoVerified app, which is connected to Broad Institute testing. This app (or website accessible on a computer) is being used by every community member who lives, learns or works on campus to complete daily symptom checks, select a time for routine testing on their assigned testing day(s) and receive notification of test results.
In close collaboration with public health experts, we have implemented campus contact tracing program made up of College staff who have completed the Johns Hopkins Contact Tracing course. This program is designed to identify campus community members who need to self-quarantine if they have tested positive for COVID-19 or who have had known contact with a person positive for COVID-19 during their infectious period. The Contact Tracer’s role is to provide support and education to the people needing to quarantine while protecting confidential and private information.
If you have questions about the College’s contact tracing program, please contact CC Curtiss, director of wellbeing and health promotion, or Steve Langlois, director of environmental health and safety.
Privacy: The health information the College receives from students, faculty and staff is confidential and will only be used and shared with those who need to know, and retained in accordance with federal and state laws. If a member of the Conn community contracts the COVID-19 virus, the College will take significant measures to protect that information.
To protect the health and safety of the Connecticut College community, visitors to the campus will be limited in spring 2021. Students will be permitted to have family members come to campus for brief visits, but they will not be allowed to enter residence halls. Family members may enter the College Center at Crozier-Williams but no other campus buildings. This is subject to change, based on the campus alert level.
There is no public access to the main campus grounds or any College buildings, including residence halls. The exterior periphery of the campus (e.g. Arboretum) will generally remain open to the public, but visitors must follow state and local distancing protocols for outdoor activities and interaction, and wear a face mask if not alone.
Please note that vehicle access to campus will be limited to the main entrance, and a Connecticut College identification (Camel Card) must be presented upon arrival at the Gatehouse.
Faculty and staff who are NOT participating in the College’s testing program are not allowed on campus without pre-registering their visit by submitting a Campus Access Request form. This form requires (1) the date and approximate time of the visit, (2) the building(s) being accessed, (3) the estimated duration of the visit and (4) the reason for the visit. Access to campus will be limited to the main College entrance, and a Connecticut College identification (Camel Card) must be presented upon arrival at the Gatehouse. All College safety protocols must be followed while on campus. This includes wearing a face mask at all times and maintaining a social distance from others. Visits should be infrequent, brief and involve minimal contact with others.
Faculty and staff who are participating in the testing program will be able to access the campus via the main entrance. As students, faculty and staff living or working on campus drive up to the Gatehouse, Campus Safety will be checking to be sure that your vehicle has the Spring 2021 COVID-19 hang tag, which signals that you are part of the College’s testing program.
In order to keep our campus healthy and safe, building access will be different this spring. So long as you are wearing a face mask, you can go to:
Please note, Harris Dining and the Snack Shop will not be available for faculty and staff this spring, so please prepare ahead for food options. Humphrey's will be open to faculty and staff only beginning Feb. 8.
Spring events will be mainly virtual. All requests for events, both in person and virtual, must first be submitted through the Events Office. Exceptions to hold in person events must be approved in advance by the Events Office, in consultation with the Vice President for Finance and Administration, the Dean of Students, and/or the Director of Campus Safety and Emergency Operations.
In-person events and programs are permitted once the campus reaches Alert Level Yellow, no earlier than Feb. 22, 2021. Based on state guidance (which is subject to change), there will be limited in-person events that are restricted to small groups that are able to be socially distant.
To assist with campus planning, we ask that all requests for events be booked with the Events Office to ensure proper occupancy levels of facilities, and to ensure all state guidelines are being met. This includes requests for remote events to be noted for campus planning purposes.
For information about planning events, current state guidance and campus event policies, please contact the Events Office directly.
Classroom/Meeting Spaces
As you enter a classroom/meeting space, please be sure that the furniture is set up according to the room’s posted floor plan to support seating that is at least six feet apart. Also consider if there are ways to increase airflow into the space by leaving the door open or opening windows. Small group in-person breakout discussions should not be conducted unless the class is outdoors or the room is large enough to accommodate the distancing necessary for everyone in the group to be six feet apart from each other. You may also want to consider having a seating chart given that people will have face coverings on and it may be more difficult to recognize people in the room.
It is recommended that you ask people in the room to note who they are sitting around so that if asked to identify them through contact tracing they are able to provide that information. A strategy that can help in this effort is for people to sit in the same place in the room when going to the same class or meeting that is held in a consistent room.
As you plan for a meeting or gathering, consider whether it can take place outside or virtually. Even when outside, you must always maintain a distance of at least six feet and continue to wear a face mask.
If you are planning a public event that is virtual, you should notify the Events Office so that the event is posted on the campus calendar for everyone to see. The Events Office created a building in their system called “Virtual” to note the online format of the gathering.
Office Work and Meetings
When in your office space, always keep your office door closed if you are not wearing a face mask. If you leave your door open, you must wear a mask. If your door is closed and a person knocks on the door, you should put on your mask before opening the door or inviting the person in.
Most offices are not large enough for two people to maintain at least six feet between them. As a result, meetings in offices will, for most people, not be possible. You should consider the following options and schedule an alternate space or format for these meetings:
Given the need to track room usage to support Facilities’ cleaning regimen, it is important that you reserve spaces that you plan to use for meetings. You can do this by emailing events@conncoll.edu or you can create an account and schedule a meeting space online.
The start date for student employment for the spring semester is Feb. 8, and job listings can include both in-person and/or remote opportunities. In-person jobs will be subject to the College’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols. Please note that eligibility for Federal Work Study begins on the first day of classes or Feb. 8.
If you use a vehicle to come to campus, after your test you will receive a hang tag to place on your rear view mirror. This will signal to Campus Safety that you are approved to be on campus and part of the testing process and enable Campus Safety to efficiently clear cars coming through the Gatehouse.
College-sponsored travel is prohibited until further notice. Additionally the College strongly discourages personal travel because of the risk of spreading COVID-19.
Nearly every state in the US and many countries across the world are locations with a COVID-19 CDC travel alert or CT travel advisory. If you do travel to an Affected Country or Affected State, you are expected to follow federal (CDC), state and College guidelines upon your return.
If you visit an Affected Country or an Affected State for more than 24 hours, and reside in Connecticut, you must also fill out a CT Travel Health Form upon arrival in Connecticut. If you are scheduled to work on campus, you must also submit a Quarantine Registration Form to the College. The College’s expectations for quarantine before you can return to work is longer than the state requires. The earliest that you can return to work on campus is nine days from your arrival back in Connecticut. The testing protocol, using the College’s testing center, for return to work is as follows:
You must also notify your supervisor or department chair if your quarantine will impact your work. If you are able to fulfill your job responsibilities remotely, you are expected to continue working during your quarantine. CT and CDC travel advisories change frequently, so we encourage you to check them often before, during and following any travel.
Please note that the State of Connecticut has communicated that failure to submit the travel form or to self-quarantine may result in monetary penalties.
We know these are challenging times and want to assure you that there are resources available for all employees.
We encourage you to stay informed as this situation evolves. Following is a list of resources that will be helpful to you:
Student Health Services
Mailing Address
Connecticut College
Student Health Services
270 Mohegan Avenue
New London, CT 06320
Emergency numbers
In case of emergency, please call 911.
Campus Safety
860-439-2222
Sexual Violence Prevention Advocate On-Call
860-460-9194