What To Expect From CCSU’s Anti-Covid Campus
CCSU campus has added many precautions in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on campus.
August 26, 2020
Central Connecticut has recently reopened its main campus to the public after promptly closing in March due to the coronavirus. In with addressing several health and safety concerns regarding the virus, the university has implemented a number of changes that will limit and prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Health Monitoring
Those who plan on returning to campus will be asked to complete CCSU’s Symptom Monitoring Survey online prior to arrival. The two-question daily survey will monitor and report if a person is or isn’t displaying any symptoms of COVID-19. The form can be filled out here.
CCSU has also established a Contact Tracing Center that will act jointly with New Britain’s local health department in the case a member of the CCSU community tests positive for COVID-19. According to the university, the center will be “staffed by a combination of nursing faculty, CCSU Health Services staff and CCSU employees who are receiving training through the Johns Hopkins COVID-19 Contact Tracing Certification program. They will work under the guidance of CCSU Health Services and epidemiologists from the New Britain Public Health Department. ”
Emergency Shutdown
In the case of a coronavirus outbreak on campus, within 96 hours the campus would shutdown. During that time, CCSU plans to enact a number of steps to limit and prevent spreading, those are listed below.
- A closure alert will be sent to the campus community delivered over emergency alerts, digital signage and electronic messaging (such as email, campus portal, the campus website, etc.).
- Classes and all events will be canceled within two hours of notification. Faculty, staff and students will be directed to collect their belongings.
- Within 48 hours of the initial notification, approximately 85 percent of the campus community is expected to have left the campus. Faculty and staff will then begin final campus closure with close monitoring of all interactions in/out of buildings and labs.
- Only researchers, residence life employees and essential (Level One) employees will have access to campus. Meals for students in the process of leaving campus will be boxed and delivered by campus providers.
- Within 72 hours, contracted movers will assist resident students with final pickup. Staff will help students who are unable to travel home find accommodations in a nearby hotel.
- Students in the quarantine or isolation halls will remain for the duration of their required seclusion.
Resident students exhibiting symptoms or that test positive for COVID-19 will be quarantined in Seth North Hall or Catharine Beecher Hall.
HyFlex & Remote Learning
CCSU has taken on online learning as one of the primary teaching methods this semester. Students are enrolled into two types of classes: asynchronous or synchronous classes.
Asynchronous classes meet fully online but do not meet at scheduled class times. Students must schedule learning time on their own and complete courses by specific due dates for these classes.
Synchronous classes are also entirely online but have scheduled class times. While majority of the work will be completed asynchronously, students will participate in virtual lectures.
Students also have to option to partake in HyFlex classes, which provide a virtual learning and traditional classroom experience. The classroom will hold approximately 14 students with a professor on campus, while the rest of the class will attend live online. Lectures for these classes will be recorded and available for playback for future use.
HyFlex courses will be reduced to 50 minutes while synchronous courses will be 75 minutes.
Student Life
While there will be several changes to the campus this semester, there will be select spaces on campus that will remain available for the community. These spaces can safely hold 40-plus people at a time; this includes: Elihu Burritt Library, Willard-DiLoreto atrium, Founders Hall, Alumni Hall, the Student Center, Kaiser Gymnasium and Devil’s Den.
ReCentral will be returning as well, with limited capacity during recreational programs. The C.J. Huang Recreation Center will reopen with hand sanitizer stations and sanitized equipment, but contact sports have been cancelled. ReCentral also plans to host online programs for the future.
The Student Center will be open to students during their new operational hours, Monday-Saturday 8:00AM-8:00PM.
A majority of clubs and organizations will be meeting virtually this semester on Microsoft Teams. For information on specific clubs or organizations visit https://thelink.ccsu.edu .
Residence Life
Before returning to campus all resident students, resident assistants and residence hall directors had to get tested for coronavirus. Following the start of the semester, CCSU plans to conduct weekly testing of 5-10 percent of the residence hall population and in-season student athletes.
Face masks are required in public areas of residence halls including hallways, stairways, bathrooms and common areas. In order to reduce risks of spreading and promote social distancing, all lounges, computer labs, kitchens or other common areas will be closed.
Resident students exhibiting symptoms or that test positive for COVID-19 will be quarantined in Seth North Hall or Catharine Beecher Hall.
Visitors are not permitted inside residence halls. For resident students looking to have visitors on campus, they may schedule visits in the new “family living room” in Hilltop Cafe or an outdoor tented space on Vance Green where safety precautions can be observed. These visits must be scheduled through ResLife.
All resident students are required to completely move-out of their dorms by Nov. 24, 2020. All classes and exams will be conducted online for the remainder of the semester.
As stated before, resident students exhibiting symptoms or have tested positive for coronavirus will be placed into quarantine.
Dining Services
This fall, meal options on campus will include dine-in, carry-out, prepackaged foods and Grub Hub delivery on campus. Dining services in Devil’s Den, Starbucks and Zime will reopen and remain available to the entire campus community.
While cash will still be acceptable at most locations, all facilitates will offer a cashless, touch-less payment method, as well as campus ID scanning. Devil’s Den purchases must be made on the in-house kiosks.
As of now, CCSU will not be selling any commuter meal plans for dining in Memorial Hall or Hilltop Cafe. The decision may change later in the semester and will be determined based on the capacity of residential dining halls.
For more information on CCSU’s blueprint plan for the fall semester, please visit https://www.ccsu.edu/blueprintForFall2020/
