Dear Students,
What a terrific week! The first week of classes is in the books, and it has been so energizing to have you back on campus and fully engaged.
COVID Dashboard
As of yesterday, 95% of faculty, 90% of students and 75% of staff are on record as being fully vaccinated. Overall, more than 87% of our entire campus community reports being fully vaccinated, and we anticipate that the student body percentage will reach 92% in the coming weeks.
There were two positive student cases reported by the Earle Student Health Center, both were symptomatic. The Furman Focused Dashboard is updated each Thursday.
Quarantine and isolation
All students who are not fully vaccinated must have a plan to quarantine off campus. Remember, fully vaccinated students identified as close contacts are not required to quarantine, and thus do not have to quarantine unless symptomatic.
We have a very limited number of isolation beds on campus which are primarily for international students and students who live far away. We will manage each student who tests positive for COVID-19 on a case-by-case basis to determine the best course of action for isolation at that time.
We do not guarantee remote access to academic courses and/or any other offerings during quarantine or isolation, as is our normal protocol for other illnesses. Students must communicate with their individual instructors to develop a plan to make up any missed academic work.
Greenville disease incidence
The infection and transmission rates in our local community continue to rise (see Dashboard). We expect students to follow recommended health and safety protocols when going into the Greenville community, especially in dense areas. So that students may continue to experience “normal” activities on campus, we strongly encourage you to minimize any high-risk (e.g., no masking, no distancing) engagement with the off-campus community.
Tailgating at football games
All student organizations are welcome to host tailgates throughout the football season! Before reserving your tailgate space, please review Furman’s revised tailgating policy for student organizations here.
Snatch a Snack Truck
The Snatch a Snack Truck will be visiting the residence hall areas on Monday, Aug. 30, starting at 8:30 p.m. Be on the lookout. And, yes, it will be serving tot nachos!
We are closely monitoring the number of positive cases in our campus community to determine the appropriateness of any adjustments or contingencies. If you have any questions, please email furman.focused@furman.edu.
Have a fun, safe weekend!
Sincerely,
The COVID Response Committee