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Campus Protocols

    • Temperature over 100.4 degrees F
    • Unexplained cough/difficulty breathing
    • Unexplained fatigue
    • Body aches and/or headaches
    • Loss of smell/taste
    • Sore throat
    • Diarrhea
    • Vomiting
    • Congestion and runny nose

    • Regularly screen your own health for COVID-19 symptoms
    • If you exhibit symptoms consult your physician (employees) or Student Health Services (students)
    • Avoid people who are sick, crowded places and close contact with other people
    • Self-quarantine if you know you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19
    • Maintain social distancing of at least six feet whenever possible
    • Wear a mask in public, and especially if you cannot maintain six feet of social distancing
    • Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for a minimum of 30 seconds
    • Use hand sanitizer (70%+ alcohol) if you cannot wash your hands
    • Avoid touching your face
    • When coughing or sneezing, cover your nose and mouth using the bend of your elbow and NOT your hands

    • Testing procedures for spring 2021 are posted on the Student Testing webpage
    • All resident students must have a negative COVID test (taken within 14 days) on arrival
    • Resident students will be tested again on arrival
    • All resident students will be tested weekly through February
    • Commuting students taking on-campus classes will be offered the opportunity to be tested weekly

    • Any faculty or staff members who experience COVID-19 symptoms should consult with their medical provider for testing; those with positive tests must notify their supervisor and quarantine until their medical provider releases them to return to work
    • See test sites for testing locations in Connecticut

  • Eastern has a team of trained contact tracers on staff to conduct contract tracing for on-campus COVID-19 cases.  Eastern is working with the North Central District of the Connecticut Department of Public Health to coordinate contact tracing for off-campus cases.

    • Students who test positive for COVID are offered the option of returning home. They must be cleared by Student Health Services to return to campus and will require a negative COVID test
    • Accommodations are in place to isolate or quarantine students who cannot return home; more than 200 beds are available for that purpose. Food service and health monitoring are provided.
    • An isolation room is available in Student Health Services to evaluate high-risk patients

    • CDC social distancing (at least six feet of separation) must be followed
    • The university has significantly increased its inventory of hand sanitizer stations, which are available at all building entrances, classroom entrances, food service areas, and in other high traffic areas in buildings
    • More than 6,000 signs are posted throughout the campus on (1) COVID-19 symptoms, (2) health/safety protocols, (3) room capacity limits, (4) traffic flow requirements, and (5) other guidelines.
    • All students, faculty, and staff must wear masks at all times on campus, except in private offices and dormitory rooms.
    • The University will provide each student, faculty, and staff member with one washable, cloth mask on request
    • Podium screens are installed in each classroom
    • Face shields are available for faculty on request, which must be worn with face masks to ensure effective protection
    • Plexiglas partitions are in place in high traffic areas with face-to-face interaction
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    • Employees are encouraged to conduct one-on-one meetings over the telephone
    • Meetings of three or more people must be conducted via Web-Ex or Teams

    • Deep cleaning is taking place during the winter break
    • Daily cleaning in the spring semester will include the use of CDC-approved disinfectants and cleaning agents, as well as disinfectant sprayers, foggers, and other cleaning materials
    • The replacement of HVAC microbial filters has been accelerated to a quarterly schedule
    • Building ventilation has been increased to improve air exchange each hour. Nightly purges of buildings have been programmed into HVAC controls 
    • The University has significantly increased the number of hand sanitizer stations throughout the campus. These will be placed outside all building entrances, classrooms, elevators, and in high traffic areas of buildings.
    • Maintenance and housekeeping staff will use protective equipment to ensure their safety and that of the campus community

    • Social distancing, masks, washing hands, and other health guidelines should be followed
    • We have been directed to remove air dryers in bathrooms; paper towels must be used
    • Custodians use established cleaning protocols and CDC-certified cleaning materials
    • Public bathrooms are cleaned and disinfected twice daily
    • Communal bathrooms in the residence halls are cleaned twice daily by custodial staff
    • Bathrooms in residential suites will be cleaned by the residents, who will be trained to use Eastern-supplied cleaning agents

    • The occupancy limits of all elevators are posted in each elevator
    • Smaller elevators will allow for only single occupancy
    • Larger elevators allow for two people at a time
    • Students, faculty and staff are expected to follow those occupancy limits
    • Elevators are part of the daily cleaning schedule
    • Wearing of masks and social distancing must be followed in elevators

    • Office staffing is limited to 50 percent of capacity and staff will rotate from on-campus workdays to telecommuting to reduce the density and frequency of social contact
    • CDC social distancing (at least six feet of separation) must be followed
    • All employees must wear face coverings in public spaces or in work areas where six feet of separation cannot be maintained
    • Offices will create rotating shifts of employees to limit density and frequency of contact
    • Meetings of more than three people must be conducted via Web-Ex or Teams