To: The Wellesley College Community
Cc: Families of Wellesley College Students
From: President Paula A. Johnson
Re: Health and Safety Update for Spring Semester
Date: January 5, 2021
I hope everyone is having a restful break, enjoying time with family and friends to the greatest extent possible. As we start the year, I think about the fact that we will have lived through a devastating global pandemic for almost two years, with so many lives lost and general disruption. I remain grateful for our community at Wellesley, who have pulled together and have achieved so much in service to providing an outstanding education to our students.
We continue to adapt to a changing landscape and given the rising COVID-19 infection rate here in Massachusetts, I am sure many of you have questions about how the College is planning to respond and adapt. I want to take this opportunity to explain how we are evaluating the risks of COVID, including the currently dominant omicron variant, and what changes we are making or considering based on the data.
As with so many aspects of this pandemic, the news is complicated. While it is unnerving to see infection rates increasing rapidly here in Massachusetts and elsewhere, it is also important to remember that we are in a much stronger and safer place than we were last year given the high vaccination rates in our community and the availability of boosters.
Reports from countries including South Africa and the United Kingdom, where omicron has peaked, suggest that while the variant is significantly more transmissible than delta, hospitalization rates for vaccinated and boosted people are lower. In our own community, we are seeing positive cases in vaccinated people who are experiencing mild cold-like symptoms—so please get tested off campus or fill out the symptom checker if you are experiencing those symptoms.
Over the next few weeks we will continue to follow the data for both Massachusetts and our immediate community to see whether the trends from other countries are replicated here.
Here are some updates we can share with you now:
Spring semester start date. The January 24 start date for the spring semester is firm; we do not plan to change it. We are, however, considering the option of starting the semester with a week (or at most two weeks) of remote classes, depending upon the trends we observe over the next few days. We plan to decide whether a remote start is necessary no later than January 12. Students may still arrive on campus beginning January 20. Students may begin scheduling arrival appointments in the housing portal by January 7. Please remember that you may not return to campus until your booster has been uploaded to the Patient Gateway so plan accordingly when you book your arrival appointment.
Booster requirement. As we have communicated previously, Wellesley is requiring students, faculty, and staff to get booster shots. The data show that boosters substantially increase protection against both the omicron and delta variants. Students are also required to receive a flu shot, and all faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to do so.
- Students who are eligible to receive the booster by January 15 must upload proof to the Patient Gateway by January 15 in order to move back to campus. Students who will be eligible for boosters after January 15 and international students who were unable to receive a booster will have 30 days to get a booster once on campus. Note that the CDC recently announced that those who received the Pfizer vaccine are eligible for a booster five months after the second shot; Moderna eligibility is still six months after the second dose.
- Faculty and staff are required to upload proof of a booster by January 15.
Masking. Data have shown that cloth masks are less effective at protecting against omicron; therefore, we are asking all community members to wear KN95, KF94, or well-fitting surgical masks when indoors. These masks are less permeable and also have an electrostatic charge that allows them to trap molecules and prevent them from being inhaled. Protective masks will be available at testing sites in advance of the start of classes. All departments (academic and administrative) can place a service request for masks on the Facilities website.
Testing. PCR testing continues to be available every week at designated sites on campus for faculty, staff, and students. Students who are currently on campus should be testing twice a week. Faculty and staff currently working on campus should be tested once a week and can test a second time during a given week if they have been exposed but are asymptomatic. Testing should occur at these main sites following College protocols; departments should not administer their own testing programs or rapid antigen tests. We will share details regarding testing starting the week of January 24 in a future communication.
Reporting positive tests. Faculty, staff, and students should report positive tests in the toolbox, even if currently off-campus or working remotely. This enables us to determine the appropriate testing schedule for you when you return to campus, as well as the date you are able to return.
Thanks to our community’s high levels of vaccination and strong compliance with testing and masking, we feel confident that we will be able to begin this semester safely. At the same time, we know that given the omicron variant, we are likely to experience a greater number of positive cases than we have previously, and we may need to adjust our approach and protocols in response. In the days and weeks ahead, we will continue to follow the public health data, make changes we feel are necessary to protect the health and safety of our community, and communicate those changes as quickly and transparently as possible.
Thank you for your understanding and patience as we continue to navigate this challenging time.
