May the coming weeks keep you and your loved ones well. Take care of yourself and each other (from a safe distance of course). The self-collected saliva test is administered through Clinical Reference Laboratory as part of the network of labs that includes VCU Health, our health care partner. Thanks for your flexibility, resourcefulness, creativity, and kindness. I want to acknowledge how much we are asking of all employees, whatever your roles. William & Mary will cover the cost of a voluntary test for students and employees who wish to be tested prior to returning home for the Thanksgiving holiday. If you still have questions, please submit a comment so that we may address any concerns and update our FAQs accordingly. Dear William & Mary Community, At our first weekly Community Conversation, I invited our far-flung William & Maryfamily to learn how the Alma Mater of the Nation is responding to the coronavirus pandemic. Even as we benefit from sharing wisdom with peer institutions in the Commonwealth and around the country, our decisions will reflect William & Marys unique culture and educational model. Violations of this personal commitment endanger our collective well-being and will result indisciplinary action. Avoid interactions with others, maintain at least 6 feet of physical distance and wear your face covering. Connect with your friends in small groups, outside (where the ventilation is good), and with masks on. Please use this. The schools of Law and Business made the transition to remote teaching last week, so teachers and students in those classes are in your second week. And we know that each decision we make generates new questions. Compliance with these requirements is mandatory for this period. But despite the changes, Mills said there have been positive effects. As COVID-19 cases rose sharply in Williamsburg this week, I shared the wrenching news that we would need to close dorms and find the students still on campus places to stay where they can more safely self-quarantine. We'd love to know what messages are giving you strength, today and every day. Nothing is more important than the health and wellness of our community. UNICEF/UNI327202/. We recognize that these decisions have weighty consequences personal, financial and more. On National Teacher Day, here are 15 inspiring quotes for teachers during the pandemic, courtesy of Parade and Teach Thought. One common theme of emails to me this week: there is overwhelming support for postponing decisions on Commencement 2020. Both the Provosts Office and Student Affairs want and need your real-time input concerning questions related to planning for the fall semester and beyond. Coordinated through the COVID-19 Response Team, updates to the Path Forward: Fall 2020 have been added to the universitys COVID-19 website. When we experience emotions like sadness and anxiety, research suggests that expressing them through visual and performing arts is one of the most effective ways to address them. (Again, pending EMT hurricane guidance.). Working closely with our local and state health officials, as well as our Virginia university partners, W&M is closely monitoring all guidance related to health and safety practices and protocols. At W&M, faculty and staff in partnership with student affairs and with student leaders can build upon the very qualities that set W&M apart. I am deeply grateful to them for their tireless and resourceful partnership. Employees are expected to continue working during this period, observing proper health protocols and with modifications as needed and approved by supervisors. Wieland teaches sophomores, juniors and seniors in her Pre-AP and AP chemistry courses. Kimberley is a Creative Director at WeAreTeachers. We have had our last classes, at least one professor put on her regalia and said lets celebrate the graduating students, said Interim Dean-Designate Lillian Mills for the McCombs School of Business. All great ideas are welcome as we work together to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission and mitigate disruption. During the first lockdown in Spring 2020, teachers, students and parents had to face the challenge of maintaining learning processes via remote schooling in Germany, as in almost all European countries ().Short-term modifications without sufficient experience were necessary and forced all providers and . Please let me know if you have additional questions. You become an investigative reporter. Social class juniors, seniors, and graduate students may request housing contract release without penalty. For members of the Class of 2020, this reality is especially keenly felt as we approach the time of degree completion in May. Masks must be worn inside at all times unless you are in a space exclusively occupied by the people in your immediate living unit. We must continue to do all we can to keep our community healthy. The ability to physically distance within a space does not eliminate the above requirements. All tests will be conducted at Kaplan Arena, which has ample room for testing stations, safe physical distancing and parking. We remind the community of CDC guidelines and recommendations, which include a self-quarantine of 14 days after travel abroad in specific regions. Students scheduled to move in on January 30 will receive a $100 rebate and those arriving February 6-7 will receive $200. With added pandemic pressure, grades are bound to slip. We will continue to work to ensure that we follow the science as we enhance our testing capacity. We recognize the stress this uncertainty places on students, families, faculty, staff and the communities we belong to. One key aspect of this program is COVID-19 prevalence testing, by which random samples of students and employees are chosen periodically to take COVID-19 tests so the university can rapidly assess potential community spread. This includes events sponsored by any recognized student organization and other affiliated groups. Spend the free time you might have during our shelter in place to nurture and start new relationships and then take care of them as the years go by, she explained. As we work through immediate-term solutions in crisis mode, we will begin to shift to living, teachingand learning during a pandemic. For a close-knit community that treasures our ceremonies, Commencement stands out as among our most cherished. Be sure to visit our Virtual Health & Wellness site where you will find an article by Dr. Kelly Crace on Flourishing during Unexpected, Uncertain, and Unwanted Change. We will also post updates and FAQs regularly on W&Ms Commencement website. We take care of each other. We are especially grateful for the partnership and shared purpose of Student Assembly President Kelsey Vita 20 and the entire SA leadership team. And please download the W&M Wellness App to stay current on all events and resources., While William & Mary is operating on a modified academic schedule, all the departments of the Dean of Students Office are available via phone (757) 221-2510 and email. These figures stem from lost revenue (study abroad, summer programs, athletics, housing, diningand parking) and new, unanticipated expenses (for software and technology needed to move learning to remote delivery, facilitate faculty and staff working at a distance, increased costs related to facilities cleaning and supplies, as well as emergency support for students in need). Ginger AmblerChair, Commencement CommitteeVice President for Student Affairs. Thank you for your resilience and kindness and for being a constant in a time of rapid change. Yet much is in our control that promotes resilience: creative adaptations to the structure and rhythms of our curriculum and adaptations to our physical plant, operations and modes of work that safeguard health. You can also access Kids Help Phone's e-mental health services 24/7 for support. The story of 12 students who integrated ATX schools, How to get to Q2 Stadium for 2023 Austin FC season, PHOTOS: Some of Austins most modern homes, Cities offer free tree, brush disposals post-storm, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Since early August we have seen that the vast majority of students, faculty and staff are fully committed to doing what is required to safeguard one another. Some students and faculty may elect simply to unplug and rest on these days; others will want to participate in a variety of recreational, social, wellness and service opportunities that will be announced later. The exact type of face covering may vary depending on the instructional environment (e.g., a university-provided face shield may be required in a lab). "For me it was a massive morale booster to meet lots of dogs and cats." Teachers say there has been a collective spirit among staff Glad to be back If there's something children have learnt from. By diligently adhering to the practices of physical distancing, good hand and personal environment hygiene, appropriate mask wearing, daily monitoring of symptoms as well as testing, quarantine if warranted, and isolation of individuals who test positive for the coronavirus we can significantly reduce the risk of spreading the virus through on-campus activities. Extending the time between phases of return allows us to welcome new students in our community safely, helping them form connections. Visit. Day one of on-site testing is Tuesday, Sept. 8, and well continue with testing daily through Friday, Sept. 18. Your questions are helping us immensely as we strive to be clear and responsive during this global crisis. 1. If you choose, you may donate your rebate to the university for emergency relief funds for students. The world is watching, and we want W&M to be the model for how universities can successfully operate in person during a pandemic. Year 12 Parent/Teacher Interviews. As. Buy that oversized $30 pack of UNO that is literally impossible to shuffle just so you can say you own it. Please call or text someone (a friend, your grandparent, or a cousin) to say hi. W&M will provide each student a free COVID-19 saliva test, mailed in advance of returning. These trends, along with additional data and considerations, will inform William & Marys spring operations. Employees should request an exception for health reasons through Human Resources. This virtual goodbye is not the forever goodbye, said Mills. All students living in campus housing, who plan to attend in-person instruction or use university facilities, will be required to have a negative COVID-19 test before returning to campus. Planning continues apace and I hope this message will address many of your queries. In acting now, we hope to allow you as much time as possible to prepare and respond. Our students and faculty have taken their pursuit of learning and scholarship online:2,000-pluscourses in two weeks. - George Burns. Thank you for your continued patience and flexibility as we determine the best path forward. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major effect on nearly all aspects of life. Event sponsors should explore solutions that include canceling, rescheduling or moving to alternative platforms. Parents of all students in the class/cohort. Testing is an important part of the multiple strategies W&M uses to safeguard the health of students and employees by reducing transmission on campus. -- Ed. The deadline to request a release is, Fall meal plan selections will automatically roll to the spring semester and students are able to make one allowable change through the add/drop period at, Students with a meal plan this fall who plan to study remotely in the spring must log on to. The modules are mandatory viewing for both students and employees on all of our campuses and properties as you return over the next several weeks. We determined that the logistics company Kallaco and its CLIA-Certified lab partners, including Opteo, provided the best balance of things we needed: high-quality clinical testing laboratories (CLIA is the gold standard); volume of tests available for those laboratories, and turnaround times. We anticipate bringing sophomores, juniors and seniors back to campus in early September. Social distancing protocols will be in place and we will require compliance with these actions. The coronavirus pandemic and school shutdowns have forced schools to go remote, creating a whole new set of extra difficulties for teachers. Such behavior, though undertaken individually, puts at risk the communitys ability to learn together in person, and also the individuals status at William & Mary. Please stand by for updates and alerts from W&Ms Emergency Management Team (EMT) as they track the storm. FS: Predominantly face-to-face and predominantly synchronous, MIX: Blend of in-person instruction with expanded remote delivery of instructional material, content and activity, RA: Predominantly remote and asynchronous, RSOC: Predominantly remote and synchronous, on campus, RSOF: Predominantly remote and synchronous, off-campus, June 25-July 7 Registration for undergraduate Transfer Students, July 13-July 30 New undergraduates registration -- check your time ticket in Banner as different groups register on different dates, July 15 courses will have been assigned attributes in Banner designating course delivery categories. If you have any questions, please contact the Testing Coordination Team at [[COVIDtest]]. Graduate courses will also begin as planned by the respective schools; We will slow the pace of student return to campus through August, to Labor Day Weekend, so as to minimize density and reduce circulation on/off campus; We will delay the start of in-person undergraduate instruction until after Labor Day, so as to ensure consistent experiences for all students (on and off campus) during a more extended return to campus; Deans will communicate details in each school, appropriate to the instruction plans already in place, which had anticipated the need to adjust throughout the semester. "The Lord gives His toughest battles to His strongest soldiers". We are asking you to continue following W&Ms policies developed with such mutual respect in mind. It is clear that we must defer the planned ceremony on May 16. The following have three themes in common: 1) They speak to parents and teachers. A multi-tiered system of supports ( MTSS) framework, like positive behavioral interventions and supports, relies on a continuum of evidence-based practices matched to student needs. "Our students and community have responded to the video in a very positive fashion," he noted before reading appreciative responses from students and their families. The work ahead will continue to be challenging in unprecedented ways and uncertainty will remain high. Reports which we are actively investigating that some of our students are gathering with no regard for their commitment to mitigate the risk of transmitting COVID-19 are disheartening. In this as in other respects, Fall 2020 will be very different at W&M. Amid pandemic, there is no place that individual choices are without consequence to the health of the William & Mary community. Because safeguarding the health of our community is a central concern, we (in consultation with our VCU Health System partners) considered several options to meet these different requirements. AUSTIN (KXAN) COVID-19 has shuttered many parts of daily life for a lot of people, including what teachers describe to KXAN as the value of meeting with them in person. Testing frequency and population percentage will evolve based on campus trends and available testing methods. If you are experiencing dire financial need this semester, the university may be able to help. As we gather new information, we will continue to use these goals to guide our best judgment. Knowing people are out there thinking of them can make all the difference in the world. Shannon S. Teachers everywhere want students to know that they havent gone anywhere. forced to try different methods to see what worked best for them and for their students. For those who want to use this time to deepen their learning on various wellness areas, we will be providing educational resources on a wide range of topics, including managing cabin fever. After discussion with Student Assembly leadership, we are also emphasizing the following for this coming week: Thank you again for taking the necessary steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on our campus and in the local community. We will have a clearer picture of this impact when the state closes the books for this fiscal year and revises its revenue forecast later this summer. All university-sponsored travel domestic and international is suspended regardless of fund source. By opting-in, you will receive periodic texts from campus administration asking what you think, how you feel or what you want related to a particular question. Our staff has kept the university running apace, rapidly adapting to new technologies and workflows and providing round-the-clock care to support our students health and wellbeing. International Students will receive specific testing instructions in the next week to 10 days. Watch: Teachers Share Uplifting Messages to Students Amid Coronavirus In these trying times, this school staff has gone the extra mile to make sure their students know they are missed. In this effort, we have good partners. Some teachers left because of the challenges of teaching during a pandemic, while others were fearful they would contract Covid-19 and some were offered higher-paying jobs. Human Resources will send you an email detailing how to launch the training. - Ed. Remind your friends to wear their masks and keep a physical distance. Exam proctoring is something W&M regularly offers and uses to meet needs of specific students and/or courses. You will make the best memories at SHU; your friends, your professors and classes, everything. COVID-19 testing is relatively new and questions are understandable. This delay from August 1 reflects potential impacts from Hurricane Isaias, and allows us to adjust operations in the early part of next week in a way that minimizes disruption. We ask everyone in our university community to aid in this effort by embracing the actions below. We will decide by April 1 whether to extend them further. It is imperative that you do your part to safeguard everyones health at William & Mary. Employees are expected to continue working during this period, observing proper health protocols and with modifications as needed and approved by supervisors. "They reached out, said, You know we're feeling that our students aren't feeling connected to school. An outstanding university workforce is built slowly, over time, to achieve the quality of expertise and human understanding and the commitment to community that distinguishes W&M faculty and staff. And remember: We're not gonna' let COVID-19 beat us. As we move forward, the goals we shared last week remain our north star: 1) to safeguard the health of students, faculty and staff; 2) to ensure students complete their classes; 3) to maintain the universitys research and other operations; 4) to do everything within our power to support national and global efforts to slow the spread of the disease. This remains a very fluid situation. For employees, they will help transition to remote work or leave, coordinate notification to departments and arrange cleaning and disinfecting. "You are braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." A. In March, we set out goals that were simple to describe yet incredibly difficult to achieve in such an uncertain and constantly changing environment. You spend a little time learning what it's like to live in someone else's shoes." Country Living. The frequency and population percentage will evolve based on campus trends, evolving science and available testing methods. This must be done in time slots, as the housing assignment system can only manage a specific number of people using it at a given time. Emergencies. In order to provide restorative breaks while remaining vigilant about the spread of COVID-19, we will offer individual spring break days in 2021, rather than a consecutive, five-day break. In addition to the Healthy Together Community Commitment, every student at William & Mary is accountable to theStudent Code of Conduct. Remote proctoring provides a reliable process for identity verification and secure testing environments. Through education and regular public health messaging across campus, we will reinforce that everyone must follow the guidelines for mitigating risk during this time of pandemic, including mask wearing, physical distancing and handwashing. Many of the outbreaks to date have resulted from large gatherings of young adults, without masks and physical distancing. Because of health concerns and regulations, Richards couldnt return to teaching her students in person. They become our families each year and we love them fiercely, even when they cant follow through or act out or dont do the work. 'The pandemic has been a great teacher' - 25 quotes from India's COVID-19 struggle By Madanmohan Rao April 01, 2021 , Updated on : Thu Apr 01 2021 08:03:31 GMT+0000 It would be unrealistic and misleading to predict there will be no cases in our community this fall. IT has set up the web resource that may also be helpful, https://www.wm.edu/offices/it/remoteresources/index.php. As the coronavirus pandemic continues, teachers and students all over the country have had to adjust to new ways of learning at a social distance. Use these COVID classroom rules posters and cards to teach your students how to stay safe in the classroom as we head back to school after the Coronavirus. We wish you all the best in the remaining weeks of the semester and during the exam period. Only students who are not currently located in the region or not planning to return to Williamsburg will be excused from mandatory prevalence testing. Many safeguards have been instituted on campus to reduce risk for students, faculty and staff eg. Building Access. From students donating their rebates to others in need to our makerspaces creating personal protective equipment for first responders and healthcare workers, the people of W&M are finding ways to support one another, their families and their communities during this challenging time. This year's National Teacher Appreciation Week is happening under the unprecedented hardships that the COVID-19 pandemic has imposed on us. Tribe Market is open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Chick-fil-A is to-go only, no indoor seating. We must remain vigilant so that we can move quickly to identify positive cases and potential exposures. We are always grateful for the work that you do, but at this particular moment in time, we are even more appreciative for your work and your caring for students. By taking further preventative steps, we maximize time for measured transitions and reduce the risk of future disruptions to our teaching, learning and research mission. Even in distress, so many of you have taken the time to send a kind note to a faculty member, staff member, student leader, or administrator. Plus, how the pandemic shows us that schools are more important than ever. The video concluded with a final comforting message: "When it rains, look for rainbows. This is not the spring semester any of us could have envisioned. Its been hard, theres been definitely a mix of emotions throughout these eight weeks that weve been there, said the Westwood High School chemistry teacher. Thank you for standing with William & Mary. In our residential setting, we interpret this as roommate/suitemate groups. Faculty are in the process of assigning course delivery information to our fall classes in Banner. More information about access and hours during that window will be shared at a later date. We hope this collection of letters helps our students relieve some stress and always remember, "An exam is only an exam. Preventing COVID-19 during travel and gatherings. Teacher workspaces displayed to the class can incorporate student work along with new notes and work that can . Room and board costs will be adjusted accordingly. Reflections on teaching, learning and technology during the COVID crisis, and hopes for the future . "These are 10 and. They will take part in our most cherished traditions: ringing the Wren Bell, Candlelight, the Walk Across Campus, formal exercises in full regalia, and the personalized school/departmental ceremonies with faculty.