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January 10: COVID-19 Community Update

January 10, 2022

To All Employees and Students,

For the spring 2022 semester, Bay Path University is moving forward with plans for in-person learning and teaching. The recent emergence of the Omicron variant further emphasizes the importance of vaccination, and, based on recommendations from the CDC and state public health guidance, we are requiring COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters for all employees and students. Vaccinations continue to be the best response to manage the effects of COVID-19. Although vaccines do not prevent all infections, they are widely available and have proven to be effective at preventing severe illness and hospitalization.

With positivity rates trending upward in our greater region, the decision to have our community almost fully vaccinated and boosted provides us with a level of protection against the virus that surpasses the cities and towns that surround our campuses. It is anticipated that COVID-19 will be with us for the foreseeable future, and may include new variants and additional fluctuations in positivity rates. We will remain vigilant, and continue to focus our efforts on developing effective responses to COVID-19 in order to ensure the safety of our community and allow us to do what we do best: teach, support, and mentor all of our students.

Testing

Students

Mandatory testing will resume for resident students and unvaccinated commuter and graduate students.

  1. Resident students are required to be tested weekly. The health service department will be open prior to the start of classes on January 13 & 14, 2022, from 8:30 AM-4:30 PM, and January 15 from 8:30 AM-12:30 PM
    1. Beginning the week of January 17, 2022, the testing site will be open on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30 AM-4:30 PM and Saturdays from 8:30 AM-12:30 PM for the remainder of the semester.
  2. Unvaccinated commuter and graduate students attending classes on any one of the Bay Path University campuses are required to provide a negative COVID test weekly. This is the same procedure that was observed during the fall semester.

Unvaccinated Employees

Beginning January 3, 2022, all unvaccinated employees who have authorized medical or religious waivers and work on any of the Bay Path University campuses must also submit to a weekly COVID test.

Unvaccinated employees have two options for testing:

  1. Test at an authorized testing site off-campus and email your results to the Assistant Vice President for Human Resources Javier Padilla at japadillia@ baypath.edu. Test results must be within 72 hours of your arrival on campus. For a list of testing sites near you visit the Get Tested in Massachusetts website.
  2. Test at the Longmeadow campus (free of charge) in the Health Services Department which will be open on January 13, 14, 2022, from 8:30 AM-4:30 PM or January 15 from 8:30 AM-12:30 PM. Beginning January 17, 2022, the testing site will be open on Mondays and Wednesdays from 8:30 AM-4:30 PM and Saturdays from 8:30 AM-12:30 PM for the duration of the spring semester.

Close Contact

Close contact testing will be offered to students and employees who have been exposed to an individual from the Bay Path campus community who tests positive for COVID-19. Vicki Braim, Close Contact Specialist, can provide details, and who is eligible for this service. If you have any questions, she can be reached at vbraim@baypath.edu or 565-1224.

Visitors

Visitors on Campus

All visitors who are 12 and older and who attend campus indoor events, single-day conferences, group meetings of six (6) or more or are invited as guest lecturers, need to present proof of full vaccination and booster or present evidence of a negative COVID test. Test results must be within 72 hours of a visitor’s arrival on campus. Please see the Meeting, Events, and Gatherings Protocol for more information on the proof of vaccination and negative test result.

Visitors/Guests in Residential Halls

Vaccinated guests with a booster will be allowed in the residence halls. Guests are defined as anyone who is not a Bay Path University residential student.

PLEASE NOTE: Guests who are not vaccinated and are not “boosted” will not be permitted in the residence halls.

We know that our Bay Path University community truly desires a place where the total university experience is offered: in-person learning; socializing with classmates and colleagues; participating in robust discussions, and enjoying the full range of campus activities.

If we are to achieve this goal, we need to take the appropriate precautions by observing health protocols. By doing so, students, faculty, and staff are poised to have a successful semester.

NEW Isolation and Quarantine Protocols

The Massachusetts Department of Health has adopted recommendations from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention concerning isolation and quarantine protocols, which the University will follow as we begin the 2022 spring semester.

Isolation

Those who test positive for COVID-19 regardless of vaccination/booster status:

  • Must remain in isolation for five days, whether having symptoms or not.
    (The day of the test date or symptom onset is day “0”.)
  • Are eligible to leave isolation after five days if they have decreasing symptoms and no fever;
    • Individuals with fever must remain in isolation until they are fever-free for 24 hrs.
  • Must wear a mask indoors and outdoors for five days after release from isolation when unable to maintain appropriate social distancing.

Quarantine

If you have been in close contact with someone who tests positive for COVID-19, you must comply with the protocols according to your vaccination status as listed below:

You have received your booster or are fully vaccinated with Moderna within the last six (6) months, Pfizer within the last five (5) months, or J&J within the last two (2) months, then you:

  • Will not have to quarantine, unless you have symptoms;
  • Can return to work or attend in-person class;
  • Must wear a mask indoors or outdoors for 10 days when unable to maintain social distancing;
  • Test on Day 5 after exposure to an individual testing positive and if symptomatic, test at any time during the 10-day period.

You have not received your booster, but are eligible, and those with university-approved religious or medical COVID-19 vaccination exemptions, then you:

  • Must quarantine for five (5) days and are prohibited from returning to work or attending in-person class;
  • Must wear a mask indoors and outdoors after release from quarantine for five (5) days when unable to maintain social distancing;
  • Test on Day 5 after exposure to an individual testing positive and if symptomatic test at any time during the 10-day period.

An important reminder:

**All Students and Employees are required to have a booster and upload proof by February 1, 2022, or sixty days (60) after becoming eligible.

To upload proof of receiving your booster, please visit the My Bay Path Portal. As of January 10, 2022, the My Bay Path portal has been updated to allow individuals to submit their booster information. If you are reading this email on a mobile device, you can submit your booster information directly here.

For step-by-step directions on how to upload your booster information, please download this PDF.

Receiving a booster is an integral part of our health and safety plan and vital in our efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19 on campus.

Please stay safe and healthy,
The COVID-19 Task Force