Infectious Disease Preparedness

Dear USG Community Members:

I hope this finds all of you well. I know the past several months have been extremely difficult for everyone, as the Covid-19 pandemic has  profoundly impacted our lives in so many ways. I want to applaud you for your resilience and dedication, as together we navigate the various challenges of this crisis and continue to carry out our vital mission of providing high-quality, accessible and affordable higher education opportunities for students at the Universities at Shady Grove.

Although our plans are not yet finalized, I want to give you an update on the work so far of our Campus Reopening Task Force and what our campus operations are likely to look like for the fall semester, with regard to course instruction and service delivery. The task force, co-chaired by Chief Strategy Officer Mary Lang and Chief Operating Officer Nico Washington, is working diligently through all of the issues that must be addressed.

As you can imagine, it’s an enormously complex challenge to develop plans and protocols that will best help to protect the health and safety of everyone in our campus community, while effectively addressing the academic needs of our nine university partners and the students we serve. There are no easy or perfect solutions, but I am heartened by the fact that our team has worked diligently to balance all of the issues involved.

I want to remind you that the work of the task force has been shaped by the Return to Campus Planning Framework that our USG leadership team developed prior to convening the group and its five subcommittees. Throughout the process, the task force has worked closely with our university partners to fully understand their own planning for how coursework will be delivered.

We will continue to provide updates on the task force’s work over the next few weeks and will post a final report on the website when it is complete, along with details about this fall’s operations.

Looking Ahead to the Fall

Following is a snapshot of how things are tentatively shaping up for the fall semester at USG:

• Most courses from our nine partner universities will be delivered remotely or online. There will likely be some exceptions to allow for limited instruction on campus, for some classes that require the use of specialized laboratories.
• The only people who should be in campus buildings during the fall are those who are deemed as essential for supporting building operations or anyone who is on campus for services that are being provided through brief, drop-in hours. This includes faculty members, students and staff who are associated with any of the lab classes that are being held on campus, when they are in session.
• All individuals on campus will be required to wear masks, consistent with the local ordinance that was put in place by Montgomery County.
• Individuals on campus will be expected to practice social distancing at all times and to wash their hands frequently. Additional hand-sanitizing kiosks will be installed throughout the campus.
• All student and academic services will continue to be provided remotely.
• Most employees will be asked to continue teleworking until further notice. You will be notified directly by your supervisor if you are expected to return to campus.
• There will be no events on campus during the fall semester.
• In order to provide students who may need access to the Internet with additional options, the campus’s WiFi network is being extended to the Shady Grove Garage for students who may wish to work in their vehicles.
• Faculty and staff who may need to visit campus to pick up materials from their offices may do so by following the current procedures that have been in place, by checking in at the main security desk in Building III (Kendall Academic Center). Unless they are on campus for one of the labs that may include some on-site sessions, these individuals should not stay on campus to work after they have picked up what they need.
• A check-in system for anyone coming on campus is still being developed and will be accompanied by procedures to screen individuals for symptoms that could be related to Covid-19. Additional procedures are being developed for Covid-19 testing referrals to the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services’ various test sites.

The recommendations and procedures noted above will not be finalized until the first week of August. Additional information on the task force’s preliminary recommendations can also be found on the attached document.

Once final decisions are made with regard to fall semester operations at USG, we will post all of the information on the website. In the meantime, we have created a feedback form if you have questions or input that you would like to share.

Thank you for your attention and I hope that many of you will be able to participate in the upcoming Town Hall to share your input.

With best regards,

-Stew

Stewart Edelstein, Ph.D.
Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, USM
Executive Director, USG

Important USG Update on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

March 20, 2020

As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis continues to evolve, the Universities at Shady Grove will be offering services remotely through the end of the spring semester. While USG remains open with remote/online services, campus buildings will not be open to the public through at least May 31.

This is in accordance with directives from the State of Maryland and the University System of Maryland (USM), which are intended to protect the health of all USG community members and minimize opportunities for community spread of the virus.

Events Cancellations

All events at USG that were scheduled through May 31 will be canceled or postponed.

These cancellations extend both to USG-sponsored events – including the USG Graduation Celebration that was planned for May 7 – and to events on campus that are hosted by other organizations and scheduled through the USG Conference and Events office.

Classes/Services

For the remainder of the spring 2020 semester, all of USG’s nine partner universities will be providing their classes through remote and online instruction.

• Students and faculty at USG will receive specific information from their home universities with details about class schedules and how remote/online instruction will be provided and accessed.
• Meanwhile, USG staff will be working remotely to provide remote/online services for students, faculty and university staff, and to support business operations. Please consult departmental pages on the USG website for details and look for periodic updates via email and other USG communication vehicles.

As the COVID-19 situation continues to evolve, as a reminder:   

• We urge all members of the USG community to remain vigilant in their individual efforts to protect themselves and others against the spread of the virus.
• We urge all of you to continue to follow the guidelines of the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), as well as all directives of our state and county officials.
• We also urge you to follow the USG website for any updates on services and to make sure you have registered to receive USG Alerts.
• Visit the webpages of the Priddy Library, Student Services, Information Technology and the Conference Center to get more information.

We know this is a difficult time for everyone, but want to assure you that all of the actions we are taking at this time are aimed at ensuring we are doing all we can to protect the health and safety of everyone within our community.

Special thanks to all of the USG staff and to the faculty and staff from our partner universities who have been working so hard throughout this crisis. Thanks to your tireless efforts, even in these challenging times, we are finding innovative ways to carry out our important mission and to best serve the needs of students, faculty, staff and the entire USG community.

Thank you all for your attention once again on this important matter. My very best to each of you and your families.

Dr. Stewart Edelstein
USG Executive Director & USM Associate Vice Chancellor

Important Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update to USG Community

March 10, 2020

Here at the Universities at Shady Grove, we are continuing to monitor a wide range of issues associated with the spread of the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).

We are working in close collaboration with the University System of Maryland (USM) and with our nine partner universities that offer classes at USG, in order to ensure we take all necessary precautions to protect students, faculty, staff and guests within our campus community. At the same time, we are working to do all we can to allow the teaching and learning process to continue as best as possible.

Today, USM Chancellor Jay Perman provided recommended guidelines to universities around the state regarding class instruction and other operations on university campuses over the next several weeks. This includes next week, which is spring break for each of the universities.

In his statement, Dr. Perman noted:

“I strongly urge every university to prepare for students to remain off campus—for at least two weeks—following the end of spring break. (USM spring break begins Saturday, March 14, and ends Sunday, March 22.) During those two weeks or longer, all USM universities should be prepared to deliver instruction remotely.

Given this guidance, I understand that USM presidents may need to cancel classes one or more days this week so that students, faculty, and staff can plan for this change in schedule post-spring break. Preparation for campus departures and online instruction will vary among universities, and each USM president therefore has discretion to ensure that faculty and staff have adequate time to set these plans in motion. While this means that some classes may be canceled this week, all campuses will remain open before, during, and after spring break.”

As a result of this guidance, all of the universities within USM – including the nine universities that operate and offer classes at USG – are determining and announcing their own specific plans regarding  class schedules and the move to online delivery for all possible classes during the two-week period following spring break, from March 23- April 6.

Some -- but not all – of the universities within USM have announced the cancellation of classes for the rest of this week, in order to allow them to prepare for transitioning to online class instruction and service delivery. We urge the students, faculty and university program staff who are at USG to consult with their universities or check their email and websites for additional details about how online classes and instructional services will be delivered by each individual university.

While the USG campus remains open at this time, this public health crisis continues to evolve rapidly and we urge all of our students, faculty and staff to be prepared in advance for the possibility of further changes in daily operations and/or services on campus. Per the university system’s guidance, we are not encouraging students to come to USG during spring break next week or during the two-week period that follows. We are working on plans to deliver as many of our services for students online during that time and will make that information available on our website.

We will continue to keep the USG community updated with additional information as it becomes available. Thank you once again for your attention on this important matter.

Dr. Stewart Edelstein
USG Executive Director

Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Preparedness Letter to USG Community

March 3, 2020

Dear USG Campus Community:

We are continuing to work closely with the University System of Maryland, our partner universities and officials in Montgomery County’s Department of Health and Human Services to monitor the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. To keep apprised on any issues related to COVID-19, we have established an internal task force comprised of representatives from USG departments that are working in conjunction with USM and the County.

As of this time, there are still no confirmed cases of the virus anywhere within the university system, the state of Maryland or the greater Washington metropolitan region.

With that said, new information continues to come out each day about the spread of the virus, both internationally and within the United States. We urge everyone within the USG community to remain vigilant in taking precautions to protect yourself and others, and to follow the most up-to-date advice and guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This important information can be found on the CDC website.

The CDC has also made updates, in recent weeks, to the guidelines regarding travel outside the U.S.

For the latest local updates and information, we also urge you to check the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services website.

As noted in our last communication, here at USG, we are taking a number of preventative steps to protect those within our campus community. We have asked our housekeeping team to increase the cleaning of high-touch surfaces and restrooms in our campus buildings. We have also added more hand-sanitizing stations throughout the campus, to aid individuals’ efforts to maintain hygiene that reduces transmission of viruses. As a best practice for overall health in cold and influenza season, the CDC recommends that individuals receive the influenza vaccination and engage in everyday, preventative measures to prevent the spread of germs and avoid illnesses. Among the recommended tips:

• Wash hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.  If soap and water are not available, use alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
• Avoid touching eyes, mouth and nose with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with individuals who are sick.
• If you are sick, please stay home and rest. If you are sick and have a fever, the CDC recommends that individuals remain home for an additional 24 hours after you no longer have a fever or signs of a fever. 
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then immediately discard the tissue in the trash.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
• Take any anti-viral medication prescribed to you as instructed.

Anyone with questions or concerns regarding COVID-19 may call the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services to speak with a nurse at the Dennis Avenue Health Center. The telephone number to call is 240-777-1755, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 4:00pm.

One final note:  In addition to the information we are providing students, faculty and staff on the USG campus, you may also be receiving helpful communications about the coronavirus directly from your home institutions. These communications include travel guidelines and information for students who may be participating in opportunities to study abroad, particularly in countries that have seen higher numbers of COVID-19 cases.

Please be sure to keep yourself informed as any new information or guidance becomes available on this important health matter. We will continue to keep you monitored if there is any change in the situation that would impact the USG campus community. The home page of the USG website has been updated to include a link to the latest updates.

If you have any additional questions about any issues at USG in relation to the Coronavirus (COVID-19), please contact either John Brandt, Safety and Security Manager (jbrandt@umd.edu) or Nico Washington, Chief Operating Officer (nico@umd.edu).

Thank you for your attention.

Dr. Stewart Edelstein
USG Executive Director