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- March 25, 2020 | Governor Orders Idahoans to Stay Home...
- Title:
- March 25, 2020 | Governor Orders Idahoans to Stay Home
- Date:
- 2020-03-25
- Category:
- Presidential Memos
- Harvested from:
- https://www.uidaho.edu/president/communications/presidential-memos
- Type:
- text
- Digital Format:
- text/html
- Reference Link:
- https://www.lib.uidaho.edu/digital/fridayletter/letters/president_memo_2020-03-25.html
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March 25, 2020 | Governor Orders Idahoans to Stay Home
TO: University of Idaho Students, Faculty and Staff
FROM: Scott Green, President
DATE: March 25, 2020
SUBJECT: Governor Orders Idahoans to Stay Home
Thank you to everyone for your responsiveness and patience as we continue to respond to the COVID-19 crisis. It continues to be a fast-changing issue and each day brings new challenges and the need to revisit how we continue to teach, learn and work.
This afternoon, Idaho Gov. Brad Little announced a 21-day stay-at-home order that greatly impacts our state. It will change some university operations, but it does not change the online/remote course delivery model currently in place. Classes will continue online/remotely for the remainder of the semester.
Students
If you are living on campus, staff will continue to ensure your needs are met. The Hub is open on the same limited schedule with take-out only service. All students should adhere to the governor’s direction and not leave residences or engage in social activities, except under limited guidance as outlined by the governor’s proclamation. This may result in you needing to remain in your residence, Greek chapter facility, apartment or house. If you do go out, please continue using social distancing and do not gather in groups.
While buildings on campus, as well as at all our statewide locations, are closed to the public, support services for students are still available. If you need services from any office, call the office or send an email to askjoe@uidaho.edu. If you need technology assistance or need a computing device to complete your studies, contact the ITS Student Technology Center.
All students, regardless of location, should continue to participate in classes under the guidance of your faculty.
Staff
If you can work from home, you are required to do so.
If your work is not possible from home, work with your supervisor to determine if your work is essential to university operations at this time and within the parameters of the governor’s orders. Each vice president and dean is responsible for approving all on-site work.
If you cannot work from home and you are not exempt from the stay-at-home order, you cannot report to work. However, guidance from the state received late Wednesday clarifies that you will retain pay to the extent possible through the use of administrative leave, compensatory time, accrued sick or annual leave, or through the provisions of emergency paid sick leave or emergency family leave as defined by the federal Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Temporary and student employees may also be eligible for pay through the FFCRA.
Rules regarding the use of leave at both the federal and state level are still being created, revised and vetted. The university is processing the information as it is received and will provide further guidance once the leave provisions at the federal and state level are finalized.
Faculty
Faculty will continue to teach online/remotely. If you can teach from home, please do so. If necessary, you can still access your classroom for course delivery. Buildings are accessible to employees with keys or keycards, but faculty must follow social distancing guidelines. If you do not already have access to the building in which you teach, call 208-885-SAFE to have the door opened and work with your dean to acquire long-term access.
Research activities at a university facility may continue if they are related to:
- Animal care (for both teaching and research animals);
- Maintaining the integrity of research facilities, specimens and data;
- Actions necessary to maintain ongoing research, but only to the extent that the action can’t be delayed and failure to take the action will result in material loss of research already performed or undue harm to human subjects;
- Research related to COVID-19.
All continued access to labs and research sites must be approved by your dean or the vice president of research and economic development.
Vandal Community
The response to COVID-19 is changing fast. It creates uncertainty and stress, but also gives us an opportunity to help and support each other as Vandals. This is challenging for us all, but we will get through this together. Thank you, again, for doing your part to help us stop the spread of this dangerous virus.
Keep Calm and Vandal On.
Scott Green
President