Sept. 30, 2020
Dear colleagues and students,
It's both gratifying and energizing to watch the campus slowly coming to life in this beautiful fall season. Thank you for doing your part to help safeguard our community and make the return of students possible. We write to share a few reminders and updates with these takeaways:
COVID-19 testing is now being held at Leverone Field House. Don't forget to fill out the Temperature and Self-Assessment (TSA) before you arrive.
Travel remains restricted; for those allowed to travel beyond New England, a 14-day quarantine is required upon return with no option to test out of quarantine.
Gatherings are limited to nine people, unless they are scheduled, approved, and monitored, in which case up to 25 may gather.
A new COVID-19 training course that has been shared with students will soon be shared with faculty and staff.
Now, on to the details.
Asymptomatic COVID-19 surveillance testing for employees is underway at Leverone Field House for those staff and faculty who are working on-site or are approved to return to on-site work and for all students. Please remember to take your temperature and complete the TSA prior to arriving on-site and bring your Dartmouth ID card and a smartphone with you. There are designated entrances for employees and for students at the field house. Dartmouth is covering testing costs and any expenses related to testing in this program for employees and students.
Recently, we have received inquiries about Dartmouth's travel policy during the pandemic and want to remind everyone that all institution-sponsored international and domestic travel for students, faculty, and staff outside of New Hampshire and Vermont is prohibited until further notice. In addition, with the exception of arriving for the start of the term and returning home at the end of the term, undergraduate students enrolled on campus are not permitted to travel outside of the local area. The "local area" is limited to the towns of Hanover, Enfield, Lebanon (including West Lebanon), and Lyme in New Hampshire, and the towns of Norwich and Hartford (including the Hartford villages of Quechee, West Hartford, White River Junction, and Wilder) in Vermont. For more information, visit Travel Guidelines.
Dartmouth has launched a new set of guidelines for campus events, dining, and gathering spaces designed to regulate the scheduled use of communal spaces by organized groups and the use of specific areas that are intended for communal activities, such as meeting rooms and dining facilities. Gatherings and events are limited to no more than nine people if unscheduled, and no more than 25 for those that are scheduled (or the capacity restriction for the space in which the gathering will occur, whichever is lower). Read more in the new policy.
Finally, to help us maintain a safe and healthy environment for everyone, Dartmouth has partnered with EVERFI to offer a COVID-19 prevention course for students and employees. This training—"Staying Healthy in a Changing Environment"—reviews basic COVID-19 information as well as related Dartmouth policies, procedures, expectations, and resources for members of our community. Students have received an email invitation to complete this training and faculty and staff will receive an email later this week. Participating in this course is an important way that you can contribute to the well-being of our colleagues, friends, and families.
Be well and hang in there.
Dr. Lisa Adams
Joshua Keniston
Co-chairs, Dartmouth COVID-19 Task Force