Jan. 20, 2021 – Faculty Return to Campus Update

Posted by webcomm on Wednesday, January 20, 2021 in Community Messages.

As we prepare to welcome students back to campus for the spring semester, we want to share some updates and reminders about our plans to bolster community safety during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

In response to requests, we are streamlining our Return to Campus Update messages. This message is specifically curated for information that is most relevant to faculty and also includes links to information shared with students, staff and postdocs for your information.

We are incredibly proud of our successful fall semester. As we know, we had no evidence of COVID-19 transmission in our classrooms or research spaces. Thus, we begin spring with great optimism, but we know that this era of unprecedented difficulty is not yet over. Indeed, in recent weeks, infection rates were rising sharply in Nashville and across the U.S. There is hope on the horizon, though, as the nation has entered a staged rollout of available vaccinations.

We are grateful for your ongoing diligence as we advance our educational mission.

Spring Return to Campus Acknowledgment

All faculty, staff, students and postdocs must complete a Spring Return to Campus Acknowledgment before returning in January. This must be completed in Oracle Cloud before the first day of classes within your respective programs.  

Please open and review the instructions for logging into Oracle Cloud and accessing and completing the module, and then complete your COVID-19 Return to Campus Acknowledgment.

VUMC-employed faculty will complete the Return to Campus Acknowledgment in the VUMC Learning Exchange.

Optional VU-employed Faculty COVID-19 Testing Program

We encourage you to review the recent updates to our optional spring testing program for VU-employed faculty and revised quarantine protocols, posted here, for those participating in regular in-person, on-campus, academic-related activities.

• If you have symptoms, contact Occupational Health or get a test through your health care provider.
• Submit any positive off-campus COVID-19 test result through RedCap to begin contact tracing efforts.

Safety Protocols

To keep our campus as safe as possible this spring, we must adhere to the safety protocols we developed in the fall. Although some community members are now receiving vaccines, the virus is still spreading. Physical distancing, face mask wearing and sanitation measures remain firmly in place to help protect public health.

Of note, the current gathering limit size is set at eight. Please review the guidelines for holding gatherings here. All undergraduate students will be following special new Commodores Care period guidelines from Jan. 25 through Feb. 3.

As conditions evolve, we will rely on public health guidance and keep everyone informed. Once again, thank you for your adaptability, creativity and dedication as we continue to achieve excellence in these challenging times.