Tuesday, February 15, 2022
A Message about A Mask-Friendly Campus and Response Team Office Hours
A COVID-19 Update
To the Bard College community:Last week, New York Governor Hochul announced the immediate end of the state’s indoor mask mandate (except in K-12 schools), due to a rapid and steep decline in COVID cases and high levels of vaccination. In addition, today the COVID-specific aspects of the NYS HERO Act are due to expire.
Based on the updated New York State policy, the low and decreasing number of COVID cases in our community, and the significant protection against illness afforded by vaccines and boosters, the College plans to adopt a “mask-friendly” policy. We will continue to monitor the incidence of COVID in the community, and if current trends continue, Bard’s mask mandate will expire at the end of the month and the campus will transition to being “mask-friendly” on March 1.
“Mask-friendly” means:
- Masks are allowed but not required in campus facilities, with three important exceptions where everyone must continue to be masked, in accordance with state guidelines:
- The Bard Health Service
- Bard transportation, including the Bard shuttle
- The Nursery School/Children’s Center
- Anyone who wants to wear a mask is welcome to do so.
- Faculty may decide on masking requirements for their individual classes.
- Those few members of our community who are not fully vaccinated due to exemptions or because they are too young to be eligible, must continue to be masked indoors at all times.
Response Team office hours
The Response Team will again hold weekly office hours this semester. Please refer to your Bard email for details. If you’re not available to join office hours, you can email us at [email protected].
As we transition to a mask-friendly campus, we honor and respect the choices of individuals to mask or not mask in accordance with the mask-friendly policy described above. The College will continue to monitor the evolving public health situation and adjust our policies as needed. We will also continue to provide tests to symptomatic students, conduct contact tracing on positive cases, and support CDC-recommended policies on campus. The safety of our students, faculty, and staff remains our top priority.
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
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
Dumaine Williams, Vice President for Student Affairs
For more information, call 845-758-6822,
or visit https://www.bard.edu.