Faculty and Staff FAQs

Info sub-menuInformation For:
Job Applicants

New Employees

Current Employees
Benefits sub-menuBard Benefits
Current Offerings

TIAA Retirement Plan

Benefits Portal Login
Forms and Handbooks
Policies and Training
Wellness sub-menuWellness
Self-Care

Off-Campus Resources
COVID-19 sub-menuCOVID-19
Employee Resources

Employee FAQs

Employee Travel Policy

Bard COVID Response
Resource Groups
Home

COVID-19 Incident Report Contact the Cares Team Campus Data Dashboard

Last updated January 13, 2022

COVID-19 Resources for Employees

Visit the Office of Human Resources main COVID-19 page for guidance about working on campus, as well as information about payroll, benefits, and office procedures during the pandemic.

Visit Bard HR COVID-19 Homepage

Vaccination

What are the vaccination and booster requirements for faculty and staff?

The College has been closely following the emergence of the Omicron variant and recently announced a booster requirement for students prior to the start of spring semester. In order to achieve the greatest protection against this new variant, and in consultation with public health officials and our higher education peers, we will also require all faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated with a booster by February 3 or within 30 days of eligibility. If you are eligible, please get your booster as soon as possible and provide updated vaccination cards here.

We appreciate those members of our faculty and staff who have already received boosters or have appointments to do so in the coming weeks. Although we intend to offer additional clinics on campus during the semester, we recommend individuals proactively secure appointments whenever possible. Boosters are currently available at most major drugstores and supermarkets and a search by location of NYS-operated sites can be found here.

If you have any questions or need assistance uploading the documentation, please email covidcheckin@bard.edu.

Is Bard a fully vaccinated campus?

Yes. Thanks to our vaccination mandate, Bard College is considered a “fully vaccinated campus” by CDC standards. This is a special status that enables the College, and our peer institutions that have achieved fully vaccinated status, to return to full capacity in-person learning, in accordance with CDC’s Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People and New York State requirements. Vaccines have been shown to be very effective at preventing illness.

All students, faculty, and staff are required to provide proof of vaccination, bringing us to a vaccination level of over 99%. The fewer than 1% of students and employees who remain unvaccinated have received prior approval for medical or religious reasons. Any unvaccinated student or employee, for as long as they are not fully vaccinated, must continue to follow the same protocols that kept our community safe last year when we were all unvaccinated, including masking and physical distancing at all times indoors or in group settings on campus.

In order to maintain our campus as fully vaccinated, the College requires all visitors to show proof of vaccination before being approved for access to College facilities.

Once fully vaccinated, do I still need to wear a mask on or off campus?

All students, faculty, and staff are required to mask in public indoor settings, regardless of vaccination status. Please see the Mask Policy page for details.

Along with vaccinations and boosters, masking remains one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of COVID. Please wear a well-fitted mask wherever masking is recommended or required on and off campus. The most important detail of masking is that whatever the type, it fits well: it should completely cover your nose and mouth, and not allow infiltration around the sides. The better the fit, the greater the protection.

We ask members of the Bard community to be mindful of your behavior off campus, where rates of COVID continue to be significant and vaccination rates are much lower than on campus. Mask-wearing is required in all indoor settings, including public transportation, as are all of the familiar protocols, such as frequent hand washing and avoiding large crowds, particularly in areas where vaccination levels are low. Act judiciously, wear a mask and practice physical distancing where directed and recommended, and remember that our collective efforts support campus health.

Are fully vaccinated individuals still at risk for getting a COVID infection?

It is important to remember that vaccination is not a guarantee against infection. The purpose and power of vaccines comes from their ability to teach and strengthen our immune systems to more effectively identify and fight viruses, in this case the virus that causes COVID, thereby avoiding serious illness despite potential exposure. Vaccination, particularly as a fully vaccinated campus, is the best way to minimize exposure and prevent serious illness and community spread.

If I have received a College-approved exemption from vaccination, what are the protocols I must follow?

Any student or employee with a College-approved exemption from vaccination, or who is not yet fully vaccinated, must be masked at all times and remain physically distanced.

Testing

What should I do if I test positive for COVID-19 or think I've been exposed?

Faculty and staff experiencing symptoms should stay home, contact their physician, and/or make an appointment to get tested. Employees experiencing symptoms, or those who have tested positive, should not come to work and should contact Human Resources at covidcheckin@bard.edu or at either 845-752-4931 or 845-750-5812.

Since every situation is different, faculty are encouraged to consult as needed with their program director, divisional chair, and the Dean of the College to develop a plan of support and to provide for continuity of instruction. Human Resources is also prepared to assist with all such queries.

Read the CDC Guidelines for Quarantine and Isolation

Will testing be available on campus this semester?

The College does not provide on-demand COVID-19 testing for employees. Please consult your primary care physician, urgent care, or other testing entity to receive a COVID test.

Some testing options include:
https://www.cvs.com/minuteclinic/covid-19-testing
https://www.pixel.labcorp.com/covid-19

What is the College's contact tracing policy?

The COVID-19 Case Management Team continues to conduct contact tracing to identify campus close contacts. In the case of a close contact, students will be notified by Health Services and will be asked to come in to take a COVID-19 test three to five days after exposure. Faculty and staff will be notified by Human Resources and will be offered a rapid antigen test.

Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 should review their daily activities for 48 hours days prior to the test or onset of symptoms and make a list of people they had close contact with. A "close contact" is someone who was less than six feet away from an infected person (laboratory-confirmed or a clinical diagnosis) for a cumulative total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period. It does not matter if you were wearing masks or not, and it does not matter if you were indoors or outdoors.

I have cold or allergy-like symptoms. Should I get a COVID-19 test?

If you experience cold or allergy-like symptoms that are not typical for you for the season, please consult your physician to be evaluated and possibly tested for COVID.

Campus Life + Facilities

What is Bard doing to help keep employees safe?

Bard College has an Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan, which was created in response to the New York HERO Act. The purpose of this plan is to protect employees against exposure and disease during an airborne infectious disease outbreak. Plan posted September 21, 2021

Download PDF

What is the College policy for hosting visitors and organizing events on campus?

Given our continued extremely low level of COVID cases among Bardians, we have recently updated our campus visitor policy.

1. Fully vaccinated household family members of Bard employees may enter campus facilities without needing approval for each individual campus visit. Bard employees who wish to have their fully vaccinated household family members granted long-term access to campus facilities should fill out this simple form to upload proof of vaccination. Approved family members are free to visit campus facilities that are otherwise already open to visitors. The residence halls, gymnasium, and library remain closed to family members and other visitors in order to ensure the continued safety and comfort of our community.

2. Academic and faculty-sponsored events may now be opened to fully vaccinated members of the community under the same protocols used by such campus venues as the Fisher Center and Hessel Museum. All visitors must demonstrate proof of vaccination in advance and wear a mask in any indoor campus setting. Event organizers will be responsible for planning and staffing for advance registration, including proof of vaccination confirmation, obtaining names and contact information, and enforcing audience mask wearing indoors.

Individuals who do not fall into either of the above two categories and are planning to enter any campus facility must receive advance approval via the “Request for Non-Bard Visitors to Campus” form, which is available to Bard employees. Students wishing to sponsor a visitor should contact their dean for more information.

Approved visitors to campus facilities must remain masked while indoors, with the exception that speakers who are physically distanced (for example, at a podium) may be unmasked while speaking. Anyone experiencing COVID symptoms, whether they are an employee or an approved visitor, should refrain from coming to campus.

Can I plan in-person activities with other members of the campus community?

Campus community members may plan small, COVID-safe in-person activities. All proposed events must adhere to COVID safety protocols as outlined in the COVID-19 Student Handbook Addendum, as well as any additional protocols needed for each specific event. Students should contact SPARC through the Office of Student Activities by emailing sparcevents@bard.edu. Employees wishing to hold events may apply by filling out the form here.

How do I reach out to the Response Team?

Every Tuesday from noon to 1PM, the Response Team holds open office hours over Zoom. No appointment is necessary; if you have a question or want to discuss anything, please drop by using the Zoom link and passcode from your Bard email. If that timing doesn’t work for you, please email us at responseteam@bard.edu and we will get back to you as quickly as possible.

Is the Bard campus open to the public?

Yes, the main Bard College campus grounds in Annandale are now open to the community. External groups that wish to hold outdoor gatherings on campus grounds should contact responseteam@bard.edu to discuss relevant restrictions and required approvals. Please note that indoor access is still restricted only to approved visitors. The College requires all visitors to show proof of vaccination before being approved for access to College facilities.

Is the Stevenson Athletic Center open?

The Stevenson Athletic Center is currently open to students and staff, with hours posted on bardathletics.com. Users should present their Bard ID at the front desk when entering the building. The pool is available for lap swim on a reservation basis. Please visit the website for more information.

As of the start of January 2022, due to elevated COVID-19 cases locally, regionally, and nationally and the logistical and safety challenges of hosting indoor events, Bard will not be allowing spectators from outside the Bard community to attend games/matches in the Stevenson Athletic Center or the Stevenson Athletic Center pool. We expect this change to be temporary and will update this policy with any changes.

Athletics and Recreation Staff, in consultation with the Response Team, will continue to evaluate the potential return of community use to the Stevenson Athletic Center, starting with family of faculty and staff. Details will be posted to bardathletics.com when dates and requirements are finalized; however, all gym patrons will be required to show vaccination status to have access to the building.

Is Montgomery Place open to the public?

The Montgomery Place grounds are open daily from dawn to dusk. Mansion tours are currently suspended. Visit the Montgomery Place website for more information.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Bard College is an equal opportunity employer and we welcome applications from those who contribute to our diversity. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, mental, or physical disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, familial status, veteran status, or genetic information.

Bard is committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for all individuals in employment practices, services, programs, and activities.

Employment Quick Links

Benefits Portal Login
New Employee Forms
Payroll Website
Office of Title IX and Nondiscrimination
Risk Management

Contact Us

Bard College Office of Human Resources
Mailing Address: PO Box 5000, (Street Address: 30 Campus Road)
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000
Phone: 845-758-7428 or Fax: 845-758-7826
Email: hr@bard.edu

We are open Monday through Friday, 9am - 5pm