A Message about Vaccination Requirements, New Testing Protocols, and Planning for the Fall
A COVID-19 Update
Topics in This Update:- Employee and student vaccinations
- New testing protocols
- Mask policy
- Stevenson Gymnasium update
- Taste Budd’s delivery update
- Engaging with the Response Team
To the Bard College community,
We are very much looking forward to welcoming first-year students to campus in a few short weeks! Thanks largely to the widespread availability of safe and highly effective vaccines, New York State and the CDC have relaxed most of their COVID-19 restrictions, allowing the College to do the same. As a result, we are planning for as much of a “return to normalcy” as possible for L&T and the fall semester. The College will continue to be guided by public health trends and guidance and data from the CDC and public health authorities as we emerge from the pandemic.
Employee and student vaccinations
Given the proven effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, it’s clear that our full return to normalcy hinges on ensuring that our community is fully vaccinated. Therefore, we announced to employees last week that the College will require all faculty and staff working on campus to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by August 1, 2021. Employees can submit proof of vaccination to Human Resources here. Employees who wish to request a medical or religious exemption may submit an Exemption Request Form to [email protected]. Requests must be submitted by July 26 for review. Exemption requests will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
For those employees who have not yet been vaccinated, a comprehensive list of local vaccination sites can be found at covid19vaccine.health.ny.gov. COVID-19 vaccines are readily available, free of charge, throughout New York State, including at pharmacies, grocery stores, and medical offices. If you have trouble locating a facility, you may reach out to your primary care doctor or contact [email protected] directly for assistance.
As noted in previous updates, students will also be required to be fully vaccinated prior to returning to campus. Details of the process for providing proof of vaccination, and for requesting medical or religious exemptions, have been communicated directly to students by the Bard Health Service. The College will accept any WHO-approved vaccine, and will assist any unvaccinated student or student with an unapproved vaccine to receive a WHO-approved vaccine upon arrival at Bard.
New testing protocols
Among the College’s adjustments to protocols moving forward will be changes to our testing regime. Students traveling from abroad will be required by their airline to have a negative COVID test before boarding a plane to the United States. However, the College itself will not require pre-arrival testing of returning students and does not plan to require any students to quarantine upon arrival. Having a fully vaccinated population enables us to forego those actions, which were necessary last year at the height of the pandemic to comply with New York State regulations and CDC guidance. Students who are unvaccinated and would like assistance in receiving a COVID-19 vaccine upon arrival should notify the Bard Health Service as soon as possible so that arrangements can be made.
Our regular weekly testing of a percentage of the on-campus population has served us well over the past 18 months, enabling the College to quickly identify and isolate infection. However, having a fully vaccinated community allows us to move to a more targeted process of symptomatic testing for the fall semester. This means, if current public health trends hold, that the College plans to minimize and possibly eliminate regular weekly testing for the fall semester. The Response Team will release more information about fall semester testing plans in the coming weeks. Students will continue to have access to testing based on symptoms at the Bard Health Service, while employees are still asked to get tested by their primary care physicians if they suspect they have been exposed to or contracted COVID-19. While the odds are low, it is possible to become infected post-vaccination, so we ask that all students and employees remain vigilant and get tested should symptoms arise.
Mask policy
Fully vaccinated individuals are no longer required to wear masks on campus except in specific circumstances (ie Bard Health Service appointments). The Response Team will consider on a case-by-case basis whether visitors may need to be masked, based on their vaccination status, travel origin, and planned activity and contacts on campus.
As part of the College’s multilayered approach to preventing the spread of COVID last year, masking provided an important and effective layer of protection that worked well as part of our strategy. This academic year, the Response Team will use the same strategy of examining data, local rates of infection, complying with any remaining State guidelines, and requiring vaccination, which has been shown to be exceedingly effective in reducing illness and preventing the spread of COVID. Data will continue to guide our plan for in-person instruction this coming semester.
Stevenson Gymnasium update
Stevenson Athletic Center remains open to students, faculty, and staff, with extended hours in July, from 8am to 8pm Monday through Friday, and 10am–4pm on Saturday and Sunday. The pool is also open to lap swim with weekday and weekend hours by reservation, with more information available on bardathletics.com.
At this point the gym remains open only to Bard students, faculty, and staff. The potential to open the Athletic Center to families of faculty and staff, community members, and others will be reevaluated in the coming weeks. Any and all updates will be available on bardathletics.com.
Taste Budd’s delivery update
Taste Budd’s Cafe, a wonderful friend-of-Bard business in Red Hook, is continuing its daily service to campus throughout the summer, providing delivery once per day at noon. Order by 11:15am via the Taste Budd’s website, selecting “Budds Bard Drop” on the menu, in order for your items to be included in the noon delivery. Item pickup is at the Taste Budd’s table at the Old Gym.
Engaging with the Response Team
The Response Team continues to meet regularly to plan for the fall semester, and will soon release event-planning guidance for those Bardians planning to hold conferences or other events this fall. For the month of July we have suspended our weekly Zoom office hours, but please do not hesitate to email us if you have a question, and feel free to consult FAQs and our previous announcements on the Bard COVID-19 page for more information.
Sincerely,
Bard College COVID-19 Response Team
[email protected]
Coleen Murphy Alexander, Vice President for Administration
Kimberly Alexander, Director, Human Resources
Jonathan Becker, Executive Vice President and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Barbara Jean Briskey, Director of Health Services
Deirdre d'Albertis, Vice President and Dean of the College
Malia Du Mont, Chief of Staff, President's Office, Vice President for Strategy and Policy
Brooke Jude, Associate Professor of Biology
John Gomez, Assistant Vice President of Operations, Director, Safety and Security
David Lindholm, Interim Athletic Director
Emily McLaughlin, Associate Dean of the College, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Jennifer Murray, Dean of International Studies
Bethany Nohlgren, Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, Dean of Students
Kahan Sablo, Dean of Inclusive Excellence
Michael Sadowski, Associate Dean of the College
David Shein, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dean of Studies
Éric Trudel, Professor of French, Chair, Faculty Senate
Dumaine Williams, Vice President for Student Affairs, Dean of Early Colleges
For more information, call 845-758-6822.