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Welcome back! We have been very excited to see everyone come back and wanted to give an update on our COVID-19 mitigation efforts. The first full week of classes at Guilford College is in the books and our learning community appears to be doing very well. Please read the full update for vital information on planning considerations for the Spring 2021 semester, including testing and information on vaccinations.
COVID-19 Testing
Dec 8-12:
- Participants: 742 Community Members
- Positive Cases: 10*
- *Some results still pending
Future Testing Events*
- Friday, January 22 - 8am-3pm (First randomized testing of the semester)
- Additional Testing Clinics in Guilford County"
- The Greensboro COVID-19 testing site is located at Piedmont Hall. Testing is conducted by StarMed Healthcare and test results for this site will be distributed by StarMed Healthcare. This is an indoor testing event. Extended testing hours are from: Monday – Friday, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM. The location of the testing site is: Piedmont Hall, 2409 West Gate City Boulevard, Greensboro, NC 27403. For pre-registration, please text the word “COVID” to 704-850-6996. You may also register online at https://unityphm.com/campaigns/starmed.
- We have over 30 members who have been close contacts to positive cases.
- All community members in isolation or quarantine are doing well
- We currently have not experienced any deaths or hospitalizations due to COVID-19.
Staying Safe During the Spring Semester
Earlier this week an announcement went out to faculty, staff and students regarding the extension of the “remote-only” restrictions for all college classes for an additional week. The cabinet with the recommendations from the Instructional Working Group, the Health & Safety Task Force and other offices on campus, took the totality of the circumstances which included increasing percentage of positive cases, the level of community spread in our county and allowing our community members that either have tested positive or are in quarantine time to finish their respective periods and rejoin everyone else on campus. We are learning more about the infectious period and have found that many that have tested positive from a symptomatic patient are exposed 48 hours prior to the symptomatic patient first showing symptoms. That means that anyone can walk into an exposure at any time. That is why we will continue to stress that each of our mindsets needs to be that everyone has the virus including ourselves. Please continue to protect yourself and your community by following the 3 W’s:
- Wear a face covering when you are indoors. If you are in your own room or office with the door closed and by yourself, you can remove it, but have it with you in case another person joins you. Wear a face covering outside when you can’t social distance (6 feet or more apart). Face coverings are not just one of the best tools we have to fight the spread of COVID-19, they are mandatory for everyone on campus. Do not go to class, meetings, indoor spaces, or any place where people gather without one. Based on guidance of health authorities, the following are not acceptable face coverings: neck gaiters, open-chin triangle bandanas, and face coverings containing valves, mesh material or holes of any kind.
- Wash your hands frequently and properly. Use soap. Take 20 seconds. Do it right to help promote good hygiene.
- Wait: Keep your distance. Stay at least 6 feet apart whenever possible. Close, prolonged contact is a proven way to spread COVID-19, so avoid it as much as possible.
- Monitor yourself for symptoms. If you feel ill, do not come to campus. Call the COVID-19 Hotline or your personal health care provider to ask if you need to be tested.
Governor’s Modified Stay at Home Order
Governor Cooper extended North Carolina’s Modified Stay At Home Order that requires people to be at home from 10 pm – 5 am to last through at least Friday, January 29. We have communicated with our community that we are following the mandates under this order. There are some exemptions. Individuals may leave home during the Stay at Home Period to:
- travel to or from a place of work;
- perform work at their workplace when the worker’s presence is required by the worker’s employer;
- travel for work purposes;
- obtain food, medical care, fuel or social services;
- travel from a business that closed at or after 10 p.m.;
- travel to a business that will open at 5 a.m.;
- travel to take care of a family member, friend or pet in another household; travel to or from a religious service;
- travel necessary for personal safety; and travel into or out of the state.
COVID-19 Vaccine
The Health and Safety Task Force is shifting our attention to developing a vaccination strategy for Guilford College. We understand that there are a lot of unknowns and questions about the COVID-19 vaccine. To that end Guilford College is working on producing some programming that aims to educate our community about the COVID-19 vaccine.
The Intercultural Engagement Center in the Office of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, in collaboration with multiple offices on campus and in the community, are hosting a Let’s Talk COVID-19 VACCINE! forum on Thursday January 21, from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Bring your questions, concerns and affirmations about the COVID-19 VACCINE. They will have experts to discuss the vaccines and how they impact health & diverse communities. The Panelist for the forum will be:
- Dr. Zoe Stallings (Family Medicine/Cone Health),
- Dr. Aleks Babić (Public Health/Guilford College), and
- Dr. Michele Malotky (Immunology/Biology Guilford College)
Please use this link to register for this event: https://tinyurl.com/IECSpring.
Here is the recording of today’s COVID-19 briefing:
https://guilford.zoom.us/rec/share/6xkTeXToyCHeHRLzpesymKOezMmzCYeK0QjObEMzO8FVZ5RAKj99Io7GY9i-Wcrh.LxofW1rXaOy1mqGO Passcode: 9101Yv^W
Please remain vigilant this next week and do everything you can protect yourself and others while on campus. Please be on the lookout for our next weekly communication on Jan 22. Please remember that if you have any questions related to COVID-19 and our efforts to mitigate the pandemic on campus, please call the COVID-19 Hotline at 336.316.2319. We are all in this together!