Move Out Deadline for Housing 5/30/2020

From: All Students on campus <all_studenton-l@wesleyan.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, May 19, 2020 4:25 PM
To: All Students on campus <all_studenton-l@wesleyan.edu>
Subject: Reminder- Move Out Deadline for Housing 5/30

Good Afternoon,

During inspections of residential spaces on campus, we found a significant number of spaces that appeared to still have belongings left behind. We have already assigned a date/time to return to campus for those students who have been in contact with us in order to complete their move outs and retrieve their belongings.

If you have not yet received an assigned date from ResLife to complete your move out: you need to email reslife@wesleyan.edu regarding availability to return to campus between May 22nd and May 30th to complete the move-out process.

Do not plan to return to campus without an approved date/time from ResLife.

If you show up to campus outside of your approved date/time, you may experience a significant delay in being provided access to your housing assignment and will be assessed a judicial point for non-compliance.

If you have not yet received an assigned date, but do not need to physically return to campus due to coordinating with other students, family, or a moving company to retrieve your belongings on your behalf- please let us know by emailing reslife@wesleyan.edu if you have not already done so.

Items and belongings not approved to remain in residential spaces past the extended move out deadline of May 30th will be discarded.  If you left belongings that you would like to be discarded/donated, please let us know by emailing reslife@wesleyan.edu.

As a reminder, guidelines and expectations for the move-out process can be found on the ResLife website:https://www.wesleyan.edu/reslife/_internal/Move%20Out%20Guidlines%20.html

Best,

Kieran

Kieran J. Duffy ( He, Him pronouns)
Assistant Director of Residential Life
Wesleyan University
237 High Street
Middletown, CT 06459
(860) 685-3429

Wesleyan Public Health Update 5_20_2020

From: Tom McLarney, MD <announcement@wesleyan.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, May 20, 2020 9:30 AM
To: Renee Johnson Thornton <rjohnson01@wesleyan.edu>
Subject: Public Health Update

To the Wesleyan Community,

Ask any driver about what irritates them, and you are likely to hear about other drivers who drive too slowly, and those who drive too fast. These tend to be subjective observations, but speed limits do give us objective guidance as to the appropriate speed of travel.

Unfortunately, there are no posted speed limits or minimum speeds listed for reopening a state. This week in Connecticut, Governor Ned Lamont has announced a phased-in reopening beginning today, May 20. I would like to discuss this from a public health perspective.

As some offices, retail businesses, restaurants, and other establishments begin to re-open, my take-home message to you all is: proceed with caution. If at all possible, continue to stay home. I urge continued self-isolation even more strongly for anyone over 65 years of age, or those who have medical conditions that place them at high risk.

At Wesleyan, the majority of faculty and staff will continue to work from home for the time being. In his announcement, Governor Lamont has permitted university research labs to reopen. As with the other sectors, this is not a mandate to reopen. Wesleyan is making plans for faculty and staff to return to work including reopening research labs in accordance with state guidelines, and detailed information is forthcoming.

On its website, the state has posted rules for each sector of the economy on reopening. General guidelines for all sectors include:

  • Promote social distancing by placing tables, chairs, etc. 6 feet or more apart.
  • Many facilities will have a 50 percent capacity limit, and no waiting areas.
  • When applicable to the business, service by appointment only.
  • Employees and patrons will be required to wear face coverings (which may be removed if eating or drinking).
  • Employees will be required to stay home when ill.
  • Staggered shifts for employees.
  • Employees should work at home if possible.
  • Touch-free appliances (soap and paper towel dispensers, automatic doors, etc.).
  • Meticulous sanitizing between customers/patrons.
  • Businesses to log employee shifts and whereabouts to help with contact tracing, if needed.

It’s important to remember that even if a business is complying with all the reopening recommendations, there is no guarantee of how safe it is to visit. It may be prudent to wait two or three weeks before going to a shop or restaurant, for example, to see if there is a spike in Covid-19 cases after the reopening. If there is, then we would suspect safety measures aren’t working.

If you do go out, do your best to maintain a 6-foot distance (imagine an inflated inner tube around your waist), don’t touch your face, and try not to touch things such as paper towel dispensers, sinks, door handles, etc. Take the stairs rather than the elevator, when possible, and never enter a crowded elevator. In a business setting, don’t use any shared equipment (phones, keyboards, etc.) when possible, or at least disinfect between users. Follow the instructions on the state’s website, follow your gut, and err on the side of caution.

From a public health perspective, it is anticipated that any re-opening in our state will result in an increase of Covid-19 cases. These need to be kept at a minimum and preparations must be in place to address increased cases. Once again, I urge you to proceed with caution and to consider staying home if at all possible, especially if you have added risk factors.

In closing, I wish you all health and safety. We are all suffering from “pandemic fatigue,” but try to embrace the positives, such as more time with family and the beautiful spring weather. I also want to congratulate all the members of the Class of 2020.  As you wrap up your time at Wesleyan, you deserve extra recognition for your strength, flexibility, and resilience these past few months.  Best wishes for success in your future endeavors!

Tom McLarney, MD

Wesleyan Public Health Update 5_7_20

Thu 5/7/2020 4:03 PM
To the Wesleyan Community,

Once again, I hope this note finds you all safe and well. My thoughts go out to all of you who have been personally affected by Covid-19.

As we continue to follow the course of this pandemic, we see parts of our country (and the world) start the process of reopening while other areas brace for possible increased cases of Covid-19. As of this week, Connecticut has over 30,000 confirmed cases and over 2,000 deaths, but has seen an overall significant decline in hospitalizations over the past two weeks. Governor Lamont is looking at criteria for beginning to re-open the state, including 14 days of decreased hospitalizations; adequate testing, personal protective equipment (PPE), and healthcare capacity; substantial contact tracing; and protection of high-risk populations. If these goals are met, we may see a partial re-opening by May 20.

What is new?

In my last update, I briefly mentioned that the drug Remdesivir was being evaluated in clinical trials. Since last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved this anti-viral medication to treat Covid-19 following a clinical trial at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) showing efficacy. This study was a randomized, double-blind study (meaning neither the provider nor the patient knew who was receiving Remdesivir or the placebo; this helps eliminate bias in a clinical study) with over a thousand patients enrolled. Efficacy was demonstrated in 50 percent of the patients receiving Remdesivir. The patients who received the medication improved by day 10 and 11 (depending on whether the medication was administered for five or 10 days) compared with the placebo group, which improved at 15 days on average. The death rate was 8 percent for those receiving Remdesivir and 11.6 percent for those receiving placebo. (This, however, did not meet the criteria for being statistically significant).

Remdesivir has a good track record showing safety in humans when trialed a few years back during the Ebola outbreak. It works by mimicking the amino acid adenosine in the virus’s RNA, which causes it not to be able to replicate or infect. (It’s kind of like replacing the fuel injector in your car with the wrong part. Your car is not going to run.) Of course, this is only one study and more research is needed. A prior study conducted in Wuhan with over 200 patients and published in The Lancet was inconclusive. If Remdesivir is ultimately able to decrease hospital stays, it will reduce the chance of hospitals becoming overwhelmed.

Progress is also being made on antibody testing. The FDA has approved a number of tests under the EUA (Emergency Use Authorization Act). At this time, we do not know how sensitive or specific these tests are. Nor do we know if a test showing past exposure to Covid-19 means that a person has protective immunity. Further research and time will tell.

Last week I discussed potential issues with Angiotensin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors and Angiotensin Receptor Blockers for patients with Covid-19. The New England Journal of Medicine published the results of three observational studies that, when taken together, seem to indicate that Covid is not worsened by these medications. Thanks to the parent who shared an article with me that theorizes these medications may actually help with recovery from Covid by increasing the ACE-2 receptor that is free floating in our blood, which traps the virus. If found to be true through further studies, that would be great news.

Researches are also looking for other, less invasive ways to test for active Covid-19. Anyone who has had the nasal swab performed will tell you it is about a millimeter shy of a brain biopsy. Thanks to another parent who shared a paper noting that a saliva test out of Rutgers University’s Human Genetics Institute has been approved by the FDA (under the EUA). There are also some initial studies being done in California looking at swabbing the cheek. At this time though the nasal swab still remains the gold standard.

Please continue to send me questions, comments, and other information you think might be useful to share with the community.

As we move forward, common sense and reason will be our best allies. Be safe. I truly believe our researchers and scientists will get us to where we need to be. Yes, the future is uncertain, but we all have each other and will get through this together.

Tom McLarney, MD

Updated Move Out Timeline: Retrieving Belongings

From: All Students on campus <all_studenton-l@wesleyan.edu>
Sent: Monday, May 4, 2020 4:12 PM
To: All Students on campus <all_studenton-l@wesleyan.edu>
Subject: Updated Move Out Timeline: Retrieving Belongings

Good Afternoon!

I’m reaching out today to provide some updates regarding the move-out process for those students who still have belongings on campus.  If you have already completed your move out, returned your key, and don’t have any belongings left on campus, please disregard this message.

If you have belongings left on campus:

If you have been approved for an extension to the move out timeline or have other extenuating circumstances that resulted in belongings being left on campus, you need to collect your belongings by May 30th.  We are planning to facilitate access for students to return to campus to retrieve their belongings between May 22nd – May 30th.  Due to the ongoing public health crisis, the move out process is more restrictive than usual.  You should use the form linked below to indicate your availability to complete the remainder of your move out.  We will use this information to assign you a date within the 5/22 – 5/30 range, based on your availability, during which we will be able to provide access to your room.

Move Out Form

Please complete and submit the form by Thursday, May 7th at 12:00 PM.

You should take a moment to review the overview of the move out process and guidelines found on the ResLife page here: Move Out Guidelines and FAQ’s

If you have any questions that are not already covered in the guidelines and FAQ’s page, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at reslife@wesleyan.edu!

Best,

Kieran

Kieran J. Duffy ( He, Him pronouns)
Assistant Director of Residential Life
Wesleyan University
237 High Street
Middletown, CT 06459
(860) 685-3429