Our Plans for the Fall

Team,

It has been one year since Idaho’s first confirmed case of COVID-19. The impact of this global pandemic has been felt by every member of our campus community. The onset of COVID-19 compelled us to pivot our classroom instruction and operations and our success is due to the concerted efforts of each member of our University community. I will never be able to adequately express how grateful I am for your commitment in making this academic year possible.

We now look to the future, and there is much hope on the horizon.

Vaccination distribution in our country is significantly increasing. Updates nationally, and from the State of Idaho, indicate that there will be enough vaccines available to reach our entire campus community in the next couple of months. This means all University students and employees will be eligible to receive a vaccine by this summer. I welcome this news. I applaud this news. I am so genuinely thankful for this news. And, when you have the opportunity, I encourage all of you to join me in getting your vaccine. Idaho has launched a website to pre-register for a vaccine, and I again encourage all Bengals to sign up.

To reiterate, we have been advised that vaccine supplies will be available, prior to the start of our fall semester, for all students, faculty, and staff who wish to receive one.

With this vaccination news in mind, I am excited to announce a return to in-person instruction and campus activities this fall. We will work to support the face-to-face delivery of those courses that, prior to the pandemic, were delivered in person where it makes sense to do so. And we will work to return our offices and operations to regular staffing and functionality. Communication about timelines and return-to-work procedures will be shared as they are developed this spring and into the summer.

Preparing for our full return to on-campus operations requires that we work collaboratively to develop comprehensive plans with public health and safety in mind. Every decision we make in the coming six months will be with the well-being of our campus community in mind. We will continue to monitor public health guidance and remain nimble as recommendations may change. Being able to achieve this goal is dependent upon a number of external factors, including low community spread and the expected access to vaccinations, but a return to normal operations for educational delivery is our collective focus.

On Monday, March 15, at 11 a.m., I will host a virtual town hall meeting for all faculty and staff. At the meeting, I will discuss our plans for Fall 2021 and answer questions. The meeting will be hosted on Zoom and stream live on YouTube. If you are unable to participate live, the meeting will be archived online. Because I anticipate that your questions will be detailed, and I want to provide the best answers that I can, I encourage you to submit your questions ahead of the meeting using this online form.

Fall 2021 Virtual Town Hall

Monday, March 15

11 a.m.

Zoom Link

Passcode: 332422

Even with this news, I ask that everyone in our Bengal community continue to be vigilant in following our established public health guidelines. It is our shared duty to keep campus as healthy as possible by wearing face coverings, maintaining physical distancing, regularly washing hands, avoiding large gatherings, reporting symptoms, and continuing to participate in our ongoing screening program. These precautions are needed to maintain campus health and safety while vaccines are distributed. The University will continue to enforce face coverings, conduct contact tracing for cases related to our community, use the health exception process, and support the campus screening program as long as is necessary.

Our personal actions and responsibility are the most powerful tools in our fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. We all must remain vigilant as we focus on a return to on-campus operations. We have a path forward and a light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you for your continued commitment and support of our students.

––Kevin

Kevin Satterlee

President

This communication was sent to all Idaho State University faculty and staff.

A similar communication was also emailed to all students.

Send comments, feedback, and questions to communications@isu.edu.

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