Dear Adelphi Community,
Over the course of the past 10 months, with your cooperation and support, we have kept the rate of COVID-19 infections at Adelphi low, which has enabled us to keep our University open in a hybrid model for learning, teaching and working. This success has been attributable to your observation of safety measures including wearing a face mask, social distancing and good hand hygiene; excellent housekeeping and disinfection; precautionary measures including personal barriers; and frequent surveillance testing for COVID-19.
While there will be far fewer community members on campus between fall finals and the start of the spring semester, it is essential that we remain vigilant in our fight against this virus.
Please be aware that the following safety and surveillance measures will remain in place during the winter break and Intersession:
- Daily health screening on the AU2GO app remains in effect for students, faculty and staff who come to campus. Essential visitors to campus will be required to check in with the Department of Public Safety and Transportation.
- All Adelphi community members who receive an email or AU2GO alert asking them to complete a random Vault Health surveillance test for COVID-19 should comply with the instructions in the email or message.
- If you are selected to take a Vault Health COVID-19 test, you must order your free personal test within 72 hours, complete it and return it promptly. Once the spring semester gets underway, failure to comply will result in an automated message to Health Services and you will be denied access to campus by way of the AU2GO app. If you are selected for testing but there is a valid reason that you cannot complete the Vault Health test, please contact Health Services at 516.877.6002 or healthservicescenter@adelphi.
edu. - Residential students on campus will continue to be tested every two weeks.
- Testing of student-athletes will be carried out in accordance with the testing guidelines in place at the time, as published by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the New York State Department of Health.
Please note that your participation in surveillance testing is important even when you have no symptoms, because it helps to contain the spread of the virus. In addition, negative results must also be reported to the New York State Department of Health and factor into the calculation of our positivity rate. In fact, as the number of people on campus drops, the percentage of cases may appear to change on the Adelphi COVID-19 Dashboard, but that is an artificial result of a diminishing denominator (the number of people on campus) in the calculation of percentages.
If you want to get tested voluntarily or via a method other than the Vault Health home-based saliva test, please consult the New York state COVID-19 Testing website for information about testing locations which are abundant and free.
Travel Guidelines
- All Adelphi community members should review New York state travel guidelines before any out-of-state travel to understand testing and quarantine expectations.
- If you travel beyond New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania or Vermont during break, you will need to quarantine in accordance with the New York state travel advisory and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requirements in place at the time before returning to campus.
- Residential students are required to submit a negative test result to Student Health Services before moving into the residence halls.
Flu Vaccines
With flu season upon us, it is also recommended that everyone who is able receives a flu shot. The Health Services Center continues to offer free flu vaccines to all members of the Adelphi community. To schedule your appointment, call Health Services at 516.877.6002 or email healthservicescenter@adelphi.
Information about what will be open on campus during Intersession is available on the Post-Thanksgiving and Intersession Services webpage.
We appreciate your continued commitment to protecting your health and the safety of your family and our community by wearing your mask, washing your hands and maintaining social distancing whenever possible. Additionally, please participate when/if you are selected for random COVID-19 testing, complete your daily AU2GO health check before you come to campus, and be sure to get your flu vaccine.
For more information about the Vault Health surveillance testing or the flu vaccine, please call Health Services at 516.877.6002 or email healthservicescenter@adelphi.
We appreciate your commitment to keeping yourself and our community safe.
Sincerely,
Gene Palma
Chief Administrative Officer and Associate Vice President
R. Sentwali Bakari, PhD
Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students