Dear faculty, staff, and students,

We’ve tackled the first week of the spring semester and I’m encouraged by reports that our campus community continues to prioritize our COVID mitigation protocols.

The student move-in process was successful thanks to our dedicated staff and the cooperation of students. There are currently 28 students in quarantine and 57 in isolation. At this time, our positivity rate is significantly lower than the surrounding region.

Faculty and staff continue to work with students in isolation or quarantine to minimize the disruption of coursework and I thank you for your commitment to supporting students. We anticipate and have already experienced positive COVID cases that may impact staffing on campus and result in temporary shifts and pauses in campus services. We are working to ensure these changes are minimal and will provide alternatives where possible.

Testing is vital to our efforts to slow the spread of COVID and testing numbers for the first week reflect your commitment to those efforts. Symptomatic testing is available for all students at the Etter Student Health Center. Asymptomatic testing is available on a limited basis and can be scheduled at ship.edu/r3 and rapid antigen tests are available for faculty and staff in the Office of Human Resources or the COVID Office. If you test positive or have been identified as a close contact, please contact the COVID Office at 717-477-1007.

Masking is still required indoors, and social distancing is encouraged when possible. Disposable surgical masks are available throughout campus for use and are currently recommended over cloth masks.

Unvaccinated individuals are at greatest risk, and vaccinations and boosters are our most powerful tool to reduce the chance of acute illness and death. If you are not vaccinated or boosted, please schedule your shot today!

Please continue to check raiderrespect.ship.edu for updates and additional information on testing, vaccinations, and other mitigation protocols.

Thank you again for your commitment to our community.

Sincerely,

Dr. Charles E. Patterson

Interim President