COVID-19 Update for UMBC Community

Sat, 07 Mar 2020 09:19:32 -0500
covid19

Dear UMBC Community Members,

Given the rapidly changing nature of the COVID-19 situation in the United States, the University System of Maryland has provided us with new guidance addressing the health and safety of students, faculty, and staff, as well as continuity of education and essential operations.

Faculty are asked to work with their departments and the Division of Information Technology to prepare to move all classes to online instruction. Supervisors will be working with their departments to establish and test telework capabilities. We ask all in our community to focus next week on preparing to implement these recommendations and emergency precautions, so that the campus is well-positioned to respond to further developments as required. As the situation is shifting rapidly, please always check our website for the most up-to-date information.

Knowing that spring break is often a time of travel, please note that UMBC is prohibiting university-related travel to any country that is under a CDC Risk Assessment Level 1, 2, or 3 related to COVID-19. We also strongly advise against any international travel, independent of CDC levels. Non-essential national travel is also not advised.

We are also asking our entire community to help us prepare for social distancing measures that can reduce the spread and transmission of COVID-19. We encourage community members to take steps now to reduce the spread of disease, such as moving meetings to online platforms.

UMBC is not canceling classes or shutting down offices at this time. We are responding to a request from Chancellor Perman to “verify that [we] can go to an online environment quickly should the need arise.” Questions can be submitted to Covid19@umbc.edu.

We appreciate your partnership, calm, and innovation during this difficult time. Please continue to take basic precautions to prevent the spread of influenza, COVID-19, and other communicable illnesses in your community. Detailed prevention information and updates on UMBC’s response can be found on our website.

Lynne Schaefer, Vice President, Finance and Administration and Nancy Young, Vice President for Student Affairs Co-Chairs, UMBC Crisis Management Executive Team