Dear Bereans,
This is the update for Tuesday, August 23, 2022; welcome back to campus, everyone!
Quarantine update
As of yesterday, we have three students in quarantine having tested positive. All are quarantining off campus. One late-arriving international student is in quarantine. We have a total of 7 on-campus employees quarantined with positive tests and 7 positive employees who work remotely. The on-campus Bereans who have tested positive work in the following buildings/areas: Admissions; Facilities; Draper Hall; the MAC Building; Marketing; and Stephenson Hall.
Kentucky update
The number of new reported cases in the Commonwealth continues to decline: 12,381 vs.14,409 last week. The test positivity rate remains very high; for the past week it was 18.96% compared to 18.51% last week. The number of deaths in the state is down a bit from last week, from 76 to 63 (i.e., about 9/day) in the Commonwealth.
COVID-19 Community Level
Madison County’s COVID community level remains in the “Yellow” designation, and one of our neighboring counties, Estill, has reached “Green.” Overall, we seem to be in a bit of a holding pattern state-wide. As school gets underway in most communities, there will be some upward pressure on the number of cases.
The CDC level and guidance for these levels can be found here.
The main difference between the CDC recommendations for the “Red” and “Yellow” levels is that indoor masking in congregate settings is mandatory for “Red,” while it is only recommended for “Yellow” and discretionary for “Green.”
As we are just completing the move-in process, the AC has decided that we will continue to require masking in all indoor congregate settings, with the same exceptions we allowed last year such as in dining settings and, for students, when in their room in their residence hall. Likewise, employees do not have to wear a mask if they are alone in a room.
We are hopeful that if Madison County stays “Yellow” and if our transition goes well, meaning that we do not experience a surge of on-campus cases, we can lessen the mask mandate, perhaps as early as sometime next week, to require indoor masking only in mass gatherings of 50 or more.
Quarantine requirements for employees
In managing quarantine and return to work, we will continue to follow CDC policy and recommendations. Please see attached the most recent guidance. Our current protocol for return to work is as follows:
To return early from any isolation, the staff or faculty member must notify the Human Resource Department through the healthyatwork@berea.edu email address and notify their immediate supervisor to inform them they are no longer symptomatic and have not had a fever for 24 hours, have not taken any fever-reducing medication, and would like to return to campus. The following protocols must be followed until the staff or faculty member has completed 10 full days from the date symptoms started if symptomatic or the date of the test if asymptomatic:
- Wear a tight-fitting mask when around others.
- Do not attend in-person gatherings.
- Avoid all work-related travel.
- Do not ride with others in a vehicle or bus.
- Maintain a social distance of at least 6 feet in both office and classroom environments.
To supervisors and close contacts, the CDC no longer requires the quarantine of close contacts, but it always requires wearing masks and getting a test on the 5th day of exposure. Close contacts should also watch for symptoms and not come to work/class if symptoms begin. See the second attachment for more information.
Please call Steve Lawson at 859-358-9308 if you have any questions or concerns your supervisor could not answer. You may continue to work remotely when able, so feel free to discuss working from home with your supervisor, though, please use sick time to rest and recover when necessary.
Flood impact update
The donation fund for the benefit of Berea employees who have suffered major losses from the flooding is up and ready to accept donations at this link here. (Scroll down a little on this page to the box entitled “Eastern Kentucky Flood Fund.). Individuals can make donations up to $5,000 via this site. If anyone wants to make a donation greater than $5,000, please contact Penny Jordan at jordanp@berea.edu or (859) 985-2602 for a check or ACH donation. Remember that since these donations will go to individuals, they are not tax deductible. However, the support that flows to our employees who lost their homes will not be taxable income for them.
Employees are also reminded that everyone is permitted up to two additional vacation days through the end of September in order to engage in flood relief work; I have heard that a number of Bereans have already done that. Thanks so very much!
Campus Trees
If you’ve been observing trees on and near our campus you will have noticed that a number of them have died. The stately green and white ash trees on campus have been very badly impacted by the emerald ash borer, and a number of them will need to be removed soon to avoid danger to pedestrians and buildings. No viable trees will be taken down.
Lyle Roelofs, President
Berea College