Delayed Start to the Spring 2022 Semester

Dear Seniors,

I would like to provide a reminder about the recent updates. Spring semester classes will start on Thursday, January 27. The Add/Drop period is now 1/20 – 02/09. Spring break will be from March 12–20.

Classes on Thursday, January 27 and Friday, January 28 will be held virtually before in-person classes resume on Monday, January 31. Students are expected to move into their residences Thursday, January 27 – Saturday, January 29.

All Students requesting an exception to move in earlier, including wood frame house residents, must complete an exception form, which is due at 12 Noon, EST on Monday, January 10. Students will receive a response about the exception by January 12.  Use the following link to access the exception request form: Early Arrival Exception Request

Reminder, you must access the form from your Wesleyan Gmail.  If you were pre-approved in the fall semester by Reslife to be on campus during the winter break, you do not need to submit another request.  Once you arrive on campus, you must follow campus COVID testing protocol, here’s a link to the January testing schedule (https://www.wesleyan.edu/keep-wes-safe/testing.html).

For more information on housing, please review the website: Delayed Start of the Spring 2022 Semester.  This website contains helpful information and the link to the form to request an exception to the Jan 27-29 arrival date.

The incomplete deadline remains the same and must be finished by January 17. However, your faculty member may have set an earlier due date. Please follow up with your professors directly if you have questions about your incomplete.

Senior Thesis writers have the same amount of time available with the same number of weeks of break. The schedule has just been readjusted. I would recommend that concerned thesis writers contact their advisors to reassess schedules.

I am also available for Zoom appointments if you have any questions. Here is my appointment link, and I look forward to answering your questions: https://calendly.com/mlguerrero217

Best wishes,

Dean Michael L. Guerrero, Class of 2022

Gordon Career Center Outreach

Welcome back! The Gordon Career Center is operating virtually as we strive to keep our community safe and healthy. Whether you are on-campus or studying remotely, our experienced team is committed to providing individualized career support through virtual appointments, online programs and resources.

We realize that many of you may be thinking about the effects of the pandemic and current events on internships and jobs. Please know that we are busy scheduling virtual info sessions and coffee chats with our employer and alumni partners who are eager to connect with you, and thousands of employers continue to post opportunities on Handshake.

As we begin the semester we encourage you to:
Activate and update your profile on Handshake to search and apply to jobs and internships (including campus employment), schedule one-on-one career advising appointments, register for virtual events, and connect with your peers as well as with students, alumni, and recruiters across the Handshake network
Schedule a virtual career advising appointment to update your resume and plan for the year ahead.
Mark your calendars for employer events, ask-me-anything sessions, and any of the other 50+ virtual events scheduled for this Fall (and don’t forget to check back often as we are continuing to add new programs).
Enroll in Career Decisions: From Insight to Impact, our free, online, at-your-own-pace course that will help you learn about unconscious influences on your decision-making and help you define what career success means to you.

For more information about our programs and resources, visit our website wesleyan.edu/careercenter, explore our digital resource library on Handshake, and connect with us on Facebook.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to us via phone 860-685-2180 or email careercenter@wesleyan.edu if you have any questions or need help getting started. We look forward to working with you now and in the future!

All best wishes,
Sharon Belden Castonguay
Executive Director, Gordon Career Center, Wesleyan University

Drop/Add

DROP/ADD
Fall 2020 Drop/Add opens in WesPortal at 8:30am ET on Monday, August 24th and closes at 5:00pm ET on Friday, September 11th.
You must enroll in the University to participate in Drop/Add. Please do so even if you have holds. You can follow-up with the holds after you’ve enrolled.
Instruction Modes:
• Be mindful of the instruction mode of your classes. If you are a remote student, be sure your classes are either: Online, Hybrid with Remote Students, or In-Person with Remote Students.
Full-credit course limit:
The four-credit course limit cannot be raised in the first week of drop/add. This will be an option starting on the first day of classes, Monday, August 31st. A full-credit course is any course with 1.0 or higher credit, excluding private music lessons.

Time Conflicts:
Drop/add ignores time conflicts. If a student plans to consider two courses with overlapping times, they will need to touch base with both professors to confirm they can meet all commitments and expectations of both classes.
Browsing Courses during Drop/Add:
For Online Courses: Faculty may allow students to browse their remote courses.
• To do so, go to WesPortal > Courses > Drop/Add Course Access, then input the zoom or moodle link to your course.
• Students can see these links in their WesPortal > Courses > Drop/Add Course Access.
For In-Person Courses: Students should not attend in-person classes they are not registered for unless they have retained explicit permission from faculty during drop/add. This is due to strict requirements for Covid classroom capacity compliance.
One-week grace period for student attendance:
Normally, faculty may drop a student who does not attend the first class meeting. For fall 2020, EPC has revised this policy: “Any registered student who cannot participate in the first scheduled class meeting must contact the instructor (in advance, or as soon as possible thereafter) to explain the absence. After the first week of classes, faculty may drop any student who has not done so. Browsing for other classes is not an acceptable reason for students to miss any class in which they hope to remain enrolled.”
Auditing of in-person classes:
The reduced classroom capacity due to social distancing means that it may not be possible to allow students to audit in-person class meetings. Community auditors may only participate in a class remotely; they may not come to campus.
For Instructors Meeting in Classroom Space:
Classroom assignments are based on strict Covid-capacities. Do not overenroll a course beyond your listed enrollment capacity, unless you have explicitly confirmed you will still be within the mandated Covid-capacity. The Covid capacities are available in EMS.

Detailed information is available on the Registrar’s website.

Drop/Add for Fall 2020 will open one week before classes begin

Enrolling in the University and Resolving Action Items

Starting on Monday, August 24, at 8:30 a.m. EDT you are required to enroll in the University. To enroll, login to WesPortal, click through the yellow alert banner at the top of the page, then click on the “Enroll Me” button. Please be aware that you will not be able to participate in drop/add until you have enrolled in the University. You must enroll in the University by Friday, September 11, at 11:59 p.m.

In addition to enrolling, you must resolve any holds in your list of Action Items. To access your list, go to:

Portal > Enrollment Checklist & Addresses > Hold/Enroll

Instruction on how to resolve each action item are provided on the page. Many action items can be resolved with a simple click of the mouse.

All action items must be resolved by Friday, September 4, at 5:00 p.m. EDT. Please be aware that you will still be able to participate in drop/add even if you have unresolved action items (as long as you have already enrolled in the University using the “Enroll Me” button).

Public Health Update 8/19/20

From: Tom McLarney, MD
Sent: Wednesday, August 19, 2020 1:45 PM
To: Renee Johnson Thornton
Subject: Public Health Update – August 19, 2020

To the Wesleyan community,

As we prepare to welcome students back to campus next week, I’m happy to report that Connecticut continues to do well with decreasing cases, hospitalizations, and deaths from COVID-19. That said, the unprecedented increases in cases and hospitalizations in most other states in the country are sobering. In addition, the mean age for cases is decreasing, and we’re continuing to learn more about the serious post-COVID syndromes experienced by many young people, including chronic fatigue and hypercoagulopathies (blood clots to the lungs, etc).

During the pandemic, it is important to distinguish between the things we can change and the things we cannot. The unpredictable course of the coronavirus and other people’s behaviors (including those who choose not to wear face coverings and congregate in large groups) are examples of the latter—generally out of our control. The best place to focus our energy is on the things we can control, which come in two parts.

First, Wesleyan is taking a wide range of measures to make the campus experience this fall as safe and healthy as possible for all students, faculty, and staff. Second, we are counting on individuals to take steps to not only protect themselves but to keep others safe and healthy.

Some of the measures Wesleyan is taking include:

Strongly encouraging all students to get tested for COVID prior to leaving home, and adhering to the State of Connecticut’s guidance for quarantine upon arrival in order to reduce the likelihood of an outbreak on campus. (More on that below.)
Following arrival, students will be tested initially twice weekly for COVID through a self-administered anterior nasal swab. This provides the benefit of detecting COVID in the pre-symptomatic or asymptomatic stage, and offers us the opportunity to both isolate the infected student and to quarantine any close contacts (roommates, housemates, intimate partners, and anyone they have been in contact with for 15 minutes or longer at a distance of less than six feet). We will aim to quarantine any close contact who may have been exposed before they are contagious (which typically happens two days prior to symptom onset), thereby greatly reducing the spread of the disease.
A student would be isolated if they either have received a positive COVID test or have clinically-diagnosed symptoms strongly suggestive of the disease. They would be isolated for a period defined by the CDC specifically as 10 days from the onset of symptoms, as long as they are improving and have had no fever for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medicines (e.g., Tylenol, Advil). The other criterion for isolation release would be two negative tests 24 hours apart. This criterion is problematic, as many people who have had COVID will continue to have a positive test for up to 60 days post-infection, but it does not mean they are contagious. This is why the 10-day window is used—viral culture studies have demonstrated that viable COVID-19 viruses are no longer present after seven to eight days after symptom onset.
Close contacts of the case, meanwhile, will be placed in quarantine for 14 days. The incubation period for COVID-19 is between two and 14 days (typically around five). If a person shows no symptoms at that time, the chance that they contracted it is very low. Some may ask if a COVID test can be done in lieu of the 14-day quarantine. The answer is no, since a negative test would not rule out an exposure that could progress to COVID in that 14-day time period.

Some of the additional measures Wesleyan is taking include: configuring classrooms, dining, and other areas to allow for a minimum of six feet of social distance; janitorial staff frequently and safely disinfecting and sanitizing areas; frequent COVID testing through the semester, and careful monitoring and contact tracing to help break the chain of contagion; and many classes being offered as a hybrid of in-classroom and online instruction. Much more information about instruction, campus life, returning to work, and health and safety is available on the Reactivating Campus website.

Secondly, it is critically important that every Wesleyan community member does their individual part for our methods to be effective. We thus expect all members of our community to take steps outlined in the Community Agreement for employees, and the Code of Conduct for students, including:

Wearing a mask or face covering at all times: Exceptions include sleeping, being in your room without visitors (roommates are okay), eating, showering, and oral hygiene. This means you must wear a face covering whenever leaving your room to go into the hallway, bathroom, etc., or if you have a guest in your room. Wearing a face covering is inconvenient, at times uncomfortable, but it protects the people around you.

Distancing: It is crucial to maintain that six-foot distance to reduce the risk of infection. At times when you are not wearing a face covering, such as when dining or brushing teeth, it is most important to make sure you practice appropriate social distancing.

Avoiding groups: Use Zoom or another virtual option when possible for study groups or socializing. Most in-person social events and parties will be prohibited. While this is difficult and contrary to the typical campus experience, these are difficult times and one super-spreader event can overwhelm the campus’s ability to care for our students and result in closure.

Preparing for arrival: Though the state has clarified that students may not ‘’test out’’ of Connecticut’s quarantine requirement, Wesleyan is strongly recommending that all students who are able to get tested for COVID prior to leaving home do so within 72 hours of arrival. If your test is positive, please do not travel to campus but seek medical advice from your healthcare provider. This will allow you to recover at home and also prevent potential spread of COVID-19 on campus. We will require documentation from your healthcare provider clearing you to return to campus, which must be consistent with the CDC guidelines.

Move-in: In order to limit the chance of contagion, we are unable to allow anyone except the student into residences. We advise students to pack lightly, bringing only what they need. Travelers coming from affected states will need to comply with the State of Connecticut guidelines.

Arrival quarantine: In order to comply with the state’s latest guidance, Wesleyan is implementing a mandatory quarantine for all students on campus from August 24 through September 7. (Those coming from affected states with high COVID activity or from outside the U.S. who arrive in Connecticut after August 24 will still need to meet the state’s and CDC’s 14-day quarantine, thus their quarantine would extend beyond September 7.) During the period of quarantine, all students will be required to remain in their residences except to pick up to-go meals and to have your twice weekly COVID test done. Students will not be allowed to leave campus during the quarantine. Once a student receives two negative test results, students living in residence halls will be permitted to expand the remaining time of their quarantine to interactions with others living on their residence hall floor or to similar sized groups of “neighbors.” Face coverings and six-foot distancing are mandated.

High-risk individuals: If you have a medical condition that places you at additional risk if exposed to COVID-19, please discuss this with your health care provider for guidance. Distance learning from home may be the safest option.

Being compliant with COVID-19 testing: The University will be testing everyone on campus at regular intervals over the semester. It is important to come to all your testing appointments. If we can identify COVID-19 on campus, we can take the measures to care for that person as well as decrease the risk of spread.

Good hand washing: Please do it frequently.

Stopping smoking and vaping: Both increase risk of bad outcomes with COVID-19. This is excellent motivation to stop habits that hurt your health in normal circumstances.

Complying with travel and visitor restrictions.

Complying with quarantine orders: You may be asked to quarantine at some time during the semester, based on either having COVID-19 or being a close contact with someone with COVID-19. Housing, meals and the ability to continue learning online will be afforded.

Getting your flu shot: Influenza vaccinations will be required to be received prior to January 20, 2021. (Exemptions are allowed as per state of Connecticut law.) Since COVID-19 and Influenza present similarly, it is important to decrease the incidence of influenza. As you recall, both Connecticut and the campus had high flu activity last year. A bad flu season and a second wave of COVID-19 could overwhelm the University and the local health care system.

Disinfecting high-touch surfaces: Cleaning your living space will also decrease risk of exposure.

We all understand that the above rules, restrictions, and advisories make campus life look different than anyone has ever seen. Until preventative medications and COVID-19 vaccines are developed, these are what we all need to do to keep ourselves and our peers and colleagues safe and healthy. These are not easy but need to be done by each and every one of us.

If we all assume that we have COVID at any time and act accordingly to protect our friends and colleagues, we have the best chance of not spreading infection.

Stay well and be safe.

Tom McLarney, MD

INSURANCE DEADLINE EXTENDED 9/15

From: All Students on campus
Sent: Tuesday, August 11, 2020 8:59 AM
To: All Students on campus
Subject: INSURANCE DEADLINE EXTENDED 9/15

Dear Wes Student,

This notice is being sent to all students. If you have already complied with the annual insurance requirements at www.gallagherstudent.com/wesleyan, you can disregard this message.

The deadline for annual insurance compliance has been extended to September 15. If you have not yet completed a waiver or enrollment form, please go to www.gallagherstudent.com/wesleyan. You will need to use your Wesleyan email user and password to log in or create an account. After this date you will no longer be able to reverse the charges and you will remain on the school insurance.

If you are remote learning, you have the option to terminate the school insurance and receive a reversal of charges and comply when you return to campus in the spring (or next fall). If you have not yet done so, please alert me by email if you decide to NOT come to campus so adjustments can be made accordingly.

Be Well,

Joyce

Joyce L. Walter

Director, Davison Health Center

Wesleyan University

327 High St.

Middletown, CT 06459

860-685-2656
860-685-2471f

www.wesleyan.edu/healthservices

Description: rainbow

Updated State Guidance on Arrival Plans Aug 3, 2020

From: Mike Whaley
Sent: Monday, August 3, 2020 1:33 PM
To: Renee Johnson Thornton
Subject: Updated State Guidance on Arrival Plans

Dear students,

In response to Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont’s recent Executive Order/Travel Advisory, Wesleyan has been advised to make changes to our arrival plans. The University is thus updating information we previously provided, and it is possible we will need to make further changes as the public health context or state guidance evolves.

The state has indicated that college students coming to Connecticut from affected states (those with high levels of Covid activity) or from other countries are not eligible to “test out” of the required two-week quarantine. In an effort to have an effective quarantine on campus, Wesleyan has determined that all students on campus will be expected to quarantine for two weeks—from August 24 until September 7. To be clear: Students coming from affected states or from outside of the U.S. who arrive in Connecticut after August 24 will still need to meet the state’s 14-day quarantine; thus, their quarantine may extend beyond September 7. Those students coming from Connecticut and other states not on the list of affected states will only need to quarantine from when they move in to campus until September 7.

All classes will be delivered remotely for the first week, beginning August 31. For those courses being taught on campus, in-person instruction will begin on September 7. (Students affected by the state’s Travel Advisory who arrive on campus after August 24 may still need to access instruction remotely at this point due to the quarantine requirement and faculty are prepared to make the necessary accommodations).

For the period of quarantine, all students will be expected to remain in their residence except to pick up to-go meals and to get a Covid-19 test at the testing site. Students will not be permitted to leave campus at all during these two weeks. Students will be tested two times per week, with the first test taking place upon arrival to campus. Once a student receives two negative test results, students living in residence halls will be permitted to expand the remaining time of their quarantine to interactions with others living on their residence hall floor or to similar sized groups of “neighbors.” (These expanded groups will be designated by the Office of Residential Life). During the entire quarantine, students will still be expected to wear face coverings and practice physical distancing.

Please realize that many of our residence halls are not air conditioned. We understand that this quarantine is going to be challenging. Given the new directives from the state, we believe this is the best way to allow our campus to meet the quarantine requirements, undergo frequent testing, and work to identify and isolate any Covid+ students as soon as possible in order to minimize the risk of an outbreak on campus. If the requirements of the quarantine cause you to reconsider studying on campus for the fall, please contact your class dean as soon as possible to make a request to study remotely.

Though students may not “test out” of the state’s quarantine requirement, in order to reduce the likelihood of a student who is Covid+ coming to campus, Wesleyan is strongly recommending that all students who are able to get tested for Covid prior to leaving home do so. The state is recommending this test be performed within 72 hours of arriving on campus. (Note: this is a change from the 14-day window that we previously communicated). You will be asked to upload a record of a negative test result to an app, which we will introduce to students in the coming weeks. If your test comes back positive for Covid, please do not travel to campus, but seek medical advice from your healthcare provider. Because Wesleyan will be testing all students upon arrival, those students who are not able to get a test in their home state will have their first test upon arrival to campus. All students are also asked to self-quarantine for two weeks prior to arriving on campus, and especially to avoid large gatherings.

Finally, there has been a change to move-in due to the latest Travel Advisory from the state. We had previously announced that students would be allowed to have one family member accompany them into the residences to assist with the move-in process. In accordance with the state’s latest guidance, only students will be permitted to enter the residences. Therefore, students should pack lightly, and only bring what they can carry to their rooms by themselves.

Sincerely,

Dean Mike Whaley
Vice President for Student Affairs

Academic Department Town Halls/Webinars

Town Halls/Webinars
The University has organized a number of Zoom webinars to address various topics related to the reactivation of campus. These virtual events will give students and families an opportunity to learn about and discuss plans for such areas as academics, health services, residential life, and more. Students and family members are encouraged to attend any or all events that are pertinent to their particular situation.

Friday, July 24, 2020
Biology
11:00 a.m.
Meeting ID: 924 4466 4078
Passcode: 076148

College of Letters
11 a.m.
Meeting ID: 929 7763 6254
Password: 962957

Theater
2 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Meeting ID: 916 8885 0061
Passcode: WesTheater

Math and Computer Science
2:15 p.m.
Meeting ID: 970 6037 2288
Passcode: 990311

Wednesday, July 29, 2020
German Studies
9 a.m.
Meeting ID: 925 0816 6330

Thursday, July 30, 2020 (Tentative Date/Time)
FGLI Town Hall
4 p.m. ET
Additional information is forthcoming

Public Health Update 7/24/20

From: Tom McLarney, MD
Sent: Friday, July 24, 2020 9:00 AM
To: Renee Johnson Thornton
Subject: Public Health Update

To the Wesleyan Community,
Welcome to the dog days of summer. Did you know this expression actually comes from the rise of Sirius, the dog star, from July 3 to August 11? It has nothing to do with dogs, though my Labrador Retriever remains skeptical. And there’s your piece of trivia for the day!

I write to you amidst a heat wave in Connecticut, as my colleagues and I are working hard in preparation for the start of school, just over a month away. Today, I’d like to share details of Wesleyan’s plans for COVID-19 testing.

For testing on campus, we are partnering with the Broad Institute, a non-profit organization based in Cambridge, MA that has a history of performing premier work with human genetics. They also have an extremely large capacity to run tests, and are partnering with many other colleges and universities in New England. The Broad Institute has promised a turn-around time for tests of 36 hours, greatly superior to the typical turnaround time of four to 10 days for many commercial labs.

The Broad Institute will be using a Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test, a kinder and gentler anterior nasal swab that students, faculty, and staff will self-administer under the observation of Davison Health Center staff. The sensitivity of this test (detection of true positives) is believed to be greater than 95 percent.

Testing at Wesleyan will begin on or around August 24, when students begin moving in to campus residences. All students will be tested on the day they arrive on campus, and must self-quarantine in their student residences. Students returning from any state with high COVID-19 activity will be required to quarantine for 14 days based on current state of Connecticut requirements. The state of Connecticut will also recognize a negative pre-arrival COVID-19 test (with written proof of test) performed within 72 hours of arrival. We are actively seeking guidance from the state related to our testing protocol and whether that will allow for a shorter quarantine based upon two negative results on campus.

On the subject of pre-arrival, we are asking all students to self-quarantine for 14 days prior to arriving on campus. Yes, I realize this will put a damper on the typical end-of-summer farewell celebrations that are a tradition for many students, but for the safety of our campus community, it is essential that students avoid such gatherings and other opportunities for contagion.

Following arrival, students will be tested twice weekly. Testing will be performed outside in tents, as outdoors has been shown to be a safer environment to deter the spread of COVID-19, and six-foot distancing will be enforced. Wesleyan faculty and staff will also be tested regularly, and details on those plans will be forthcoming. We’ll be releasing more details regarding testing locations and appointments in the near future. Wesleyan is also pursuing an app that will remind people of their test times, give test results, and share national and state information related to COVID, among other things.

With the results of these tests, Wesleyan will be performing contact tracing to contain the spread of any contagion. This means that anyone who receives a positive test will be asked about anyone with whom they had close contact (including roommates/housemates, intimate partners, and anyone with whom they have been in contact—less than 6 feet apart—for 15 minutes or longer) within 48 hours prior to the test being performed (or, if the person tested is showing symptoms, within 48 hours prior to symptom onset). We will reach out to these individuals, without revealing the identity of the person who tested positive, and they will be required to quarantine for 14 days (the maximum incubation time for COVID-19). Because people can infect others two days prior to symptom onset, we aim to put close contacts in quarantine before they become infectious, preventing the spread of COVID.

Wesleyan will cover the cost of all testing. Needless to say, if a student, staff, or faculty member will be doing 100 percent of their work virtually (off-campus), there is no need to come to campus for a COVID test. We are not planning to do antibody testing on campus, as these tests do not tell if someone has an active disease, nor do they necessarily mean that person is immune to reinfection from COVID-19.

Testing and contact tracing will go a long way toward keeping us all safe, but practicing other safe behaviors at all times—including wearing masks/face coverings anytime you are in public (outside your own dorm room or private office), staying more than six feet away from others, and washing hands frequently—are also critical. Please pack a thermometer to help self-monitor for illness.

Stay safe, and I look forward to seeing many of you on campus (a safe distance away!) very soon.

Tom McLarney, MD

Brief Information on Tech Resources for online courses

Remote Student Tech Needs
Rachel Schnepper
Wed 7/22/2020 3:29 PM
  1. Internet Access. As long as the service that you are obtaining will provide you with “2 Mbps up/down” (2 Megabits per second of bandwidth for uploading and downloading), you should have no issues participating in Zoom. Students can test their home internet speeds at: https://www.speedtest.net/
  2. Software for Students: – Wesleyan provides many applications via a virtual application environment called MyApps. You can run these applications on your personal device without having to install it locally. Myapps.wesleyan.edu opens up a portal with access to the following applications:  (Note that these applications run on either a Windows or Mac, even if the application is Windows-only based). More information on software available for students and software running on MyApps can be found here: https://www.wesleyan.edu/its/services/teaching/software_new.html
  3. Zoom. All students have a Pro license of Zoom. Please consult the Zoom Quickstart Guide for Students we developed. Additional resources are available through Zoom Help Center. Login to Wesleyan’s Zoom here.
  4. Higher power computers for specific courses.
  5. Noise-cancelling headphones to create a quiet place to study in a busy home environment.