Important Arrival Information for Off-Campus Students

Dear Students and Families:

With the start of the Fall 2020 semester approaching, we look forward to welcoming you to campus soon. As you are a student living off campus, we write with important information related to your requirements prior to accessing campus for the first day of classes or your first on-campus engagement, including details on the COVID-19 screening process. In addition, we encourage you to review and take the Stay Safe Pledge to learn about our community expectations to protect the health and safety of all our campus community members.

To ensure you have all the information you need, and to make this message as clear and concise as possible, you will note we are bulleting out information below. Please read this letter completely and carefully. Topics covered in this message include:

• Off-Campus Student Check-In and Testing Centers
• Off-Campus Student Check-In Testing Instructions
• Screening Process after Aug. 23
• Quarantine Requirement Affirmation (if applicable)
• Pre-Arrival Testing and Campus Access Approvals

Off-Campus Student Check-In and Testing Centers

• All students, including those living off campus, are required to participate in a COVID arrival screening prior to accessing campus.
• Off-campus students can access their required COVID screening at one of these Off-Campus Student Check-In Center locations (all tented):
  • Skytop Parking Lot (gravel parking lot at the top of Skytop hill)
  • Corner of Ostrom Avenue and Euclid Avenue (near the back corner of Shaw Hall)
  • 111 Waverly Avenue/804 University Avenue (former Health Services center)
  • Falk College Plaza (outside the White Hall and MacNaughton Hall entranceways, at the end of the Q1 Parking Lot)
• The Off-Campus Student Check-In Centers will be available beginning today, Wednesday, Aug. 19, until Sunday, Aug. 23, between noon and 6 p.m. (The Skytop Parking Lot Check-In Center will be available on the same dates from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.)

Off-Campus Student Check-In Testing Instructions

• All students must wear a mask when arriving to an Off-Campus Student Check-In Center.
• At check-in, we will:
  • administer a COVID-19 screening on-site
  • provide a COVID-19 Wellness Kit (includes three reusable cloth masks, thermometer, no-touch door opener, hand sanitizer and resource information)
• Students with proof of a negative COVID-19 test will then receive a COVID-19 screening. Below is important information to prepare for the screening:
• Please do NOT eat or drink—including water, gum, mints, lozenges, smoking or smokeless tobacco products—for 30 minutes prior to arriving to the check-in center.
• Please do NOT brush your teeth or use mouthwash for 3 hours prior to arriving to the check-in center.
• After your screening, you will be directed to a waiting area near the check-in center until your screening results are returned.
• Students awaiting results from LetsGetChecked can participate in the COVID-19 arrival screening while awaiting their results.

Check-In Process after Sunday, Aug. 23

If you are arriving to your off-campus residence after Sunday, Aug. 23, please contact sucovid@syr.edu to schedule your arrival COVID screening prior to beginning in-person classes or attending your first on-campus engagement.

Quarantine Requirement Affirmation (if applicable)

As a reminder, if you are traveling from a state listed in the New York State travel advisory or from outside the United States (excluding Canada), you must complete your 14-day self-quarantine before accessing on-campus privileges. Please complete the student affirmation of self-quarantine form emailed to you. Students arriving from states listed in the New York State travel advisory must also complete the New York State Traveler Health Form.

• Important Note: If you have resided in a state not impacted by the travel advisory, or within New York, you should still certify your compliance on the student affirmation of self-quarantine form. [Note (8.21.20): This is intended for students who are from a state listed in the New York State travel advisory or international students by way of permanent address who never left New York State or didn’t return to their state or country, but received a prompt to complete the form due to their address of record.]
• Important Note: If you were required to comply with the quarantine requirement and have not yet completed the student affirmation of self-quarantine form and provided it to the University, you will NOT be permitted to access on-campus privileges. Please complete the form that was emailed to you prior to arriving on campus.
• Important Note: If your quarantine plans are such that you need to begin your classes remotely, please arrange with your professors and transition to in-person attendance once you are cleared to access campus.

Pre-Arrival Testing and Campus Access Approvals

As announced by the University in July, all students, including students living off campus, are required to demonstrate to the University a negative COVID-19 test, administered within a 10-day window of your first day of in-person classes or first on-campus engagement. Accordingly:

• If you decided to be tested in your community or were tested locally (i.e., did not utilize the LetsGetChecked at-home test program), your test results must be submitted to the University prior to being permitted to access on-campus privileges.
• To submit your results, visit the Patient Portal, log in using your SU NetID and password, click “Upload Forms,” select “COVID-19 Documents,” and follow the upload instructions.
• Important Note: Students will not be allowed to access on-campus privileges without proof of a negative COVID-19 test. For that reason, if on your first day of in-person classes or first scheduled on-campus engagement, your community or local test provider has not yet provided you proof of a negative test result, you cannot access campus until negative test results are received.
• If you were tested via the LetsGetChecked at-home testing program, your test results will be uploaded to the LetsGetChecked online portal and shared with you and the University as soon as they are available.
  • If you have been informed by LetsGetChecked of a negative result, this is your “clearance” from the University to visit an Off-Campus Student Check-In Center.
  • If you receive notice of a positive result, you will be contacted by the Barnes Center and asked to self-isolate. You will not be approved to access on-campus privileges until you complete your required isolation, as per CDC guidelines.
  • If you have already taken and returned your LetsGetChecked at-home test but your result is still pending by the first day of classes, please arrange with your professors to begin your classes remotely and transition to in-person attendance once your negative results have been received and you have been cleared to access campus.

We appreciate you may have more questions that come to mind in the coming days. Please visit the Frequently Asked Questions section of our Fall 2020 Open website. If you are unable to find the answer to your question, please contact studentexperience@syr.edu.

Again, we are looking forward to welcoming you to campus!

Sincerely,

J. Michael Haynie
Vice Chancellor for Strategic Initiatives and Innovation

Amanda G. Nicholson
Interim Deputy Senior Vice President for Enrollment and the Student Experience

Peter Vanable
Dean of the Graduate School
Associate Provost for Graduate Studies