An Update on Holiday Travel, Campus COVID Protocols, and Vaccine Booster Clinics
A COVID-19 Update
To the Bard College community,We are nearing the end of the semester and would like to take the opportunity to thank the community for your continued support.
Holiday travel
With many of us making plans to travel to or host family and friends for Thanksgiving, we would like to reiterate the importance of observing COVID safety protocols while enjoying the holiday break. Unlike living, working, and studying on a fully vaccinated campus, traveling and gathering indoors in group settings off campus still pose a risk for exposure and possible infection. Please observe the now familiar safety protocols of mask wearing, frequent hand washing, and distancing wherever possible while off campus. This is particularly important when using public transportation and in larger groups, especially where the vaccination status of others is uncertain. If you find yourself in a group and you do not know the vaccination status of everyone in the group, please wear a mask to keep yourself and others safe. The virus is still quite prominent in many states and localities, so taking these familiar precautions is important to minimize the risk of infection or spread over the holiday break.
Our local community has seen an uptick in COVID cases recently, so we ask that all Bardians continue to exercise care when interacting with others off campus. Bard’s Contact Tracing Team remains active, and immediately conducts contact tracing anytime a member of the Bard community is identified as a positive case. Please review the College’s testing and exposure guidance for more information. A recent cluster of local cases reminds us that unvaccinated people, who can be infected and asymptomatic, can spread the virus to vaccinated populations.
Campus COVID protocols
It is essential to keep in mind that some members of the Bard community need to remain unvaccinated for medical or religious reasons. To keep those members of our community safe, and to strengthen our community’s resistance to the spread of COVID, we would like to remind all Bardians of these key COVID protocols that remain in effect on campus:
- Masking indoors including in classrooms, the Campus Center, the library, and on the Bard shuttle. Please pay close attention to masking signage around campus. If another member of the Bard community asks you to put on a mask, please respect that person’s request and comply immediately.
- No visitors are allowed in residence halls. Visitors are allowed to attend designated campus events under the following circumstances: they have registered and provided proof of vaccination in advance, and have received approval through the Bard COVID Coordinator.
Vaccine booster clinic
We would also like to announce that the College will host another COVID-19 vaccine booster clinic on Tuesday, November 23, from 10am-1pm at the Stevenson Gymnasium. There will be boosters available for J&J, Moderna, and Pfizer. Please indicate which one you need when you fill out the form HERE to register. Please bring a valid state/federal ID, your insurance card, and COVID-19 vaccine card.
We continue to maintain the College’s COVID webpage, where you can find information about the College’s COVID policies, and the dashboard, which contains up-to-date information about COVID cases in the Bard community this semester. The Response Team also continues to hold office hours every Tuesday 12-1PM via Zoom. Please use the Zoom link and passcode provided in the message to your Bard email.
We wish everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday.
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
Christian Ayne Crouch, Dean of Graduate Studies
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, Faculty Representative
Dumaine Williams, Vice President for Student Affairs, Dean of Early Colleges
For more information, call 845-758-6822.