Dear Members of the Campus Community:
Here are this week’s five things you need to know about Fordham’s COVID-19 precautions, vaccinations, and University operations (You can read the State of New York’s most recent COVID-19 guidelines on its Novel Coronavirus page):
- In the last 14 days, 4 members of the University community tested positive for COVID-19, a positivity rate of 4.88% of 82 tests administered, as listed on the University dashboard.
- As of September 1, no unvaccinated student or employee will be allowed on campus unless they have received an official accommodation from the University. A negative COVID-19 test will not be considered an acceptable alternative to proof of vaccination.
- Employees who do not intend to be vaccinated should apply for an unpaid leave of absence by August 2: they will have the opportunity to continue their medical, dental, vision, and basic life insurance benefits during the leave, and will be responsible for paying the premium cost-share amount currently deducted from their paychecks. See full details at fordham.edu/hr
- Employees who have not provided proof of vaccination nor requested an accommodation will be placed on an unpaid leave of absence without benefits for the fall semester as of September 1. Employees who have: applied for an accommodation; or applied for an unpaid leave of absence; or have begun their COVID-19 vaccination series will have a grace period to complete the process.
- All University employees should now be performing their daily check-in on VitalCheck. Employees who are not receiving daily text or email prompts from VitalCheck should contact their COVID-19 coordinator, or register with VitalCheck at: hrvitalcheck@fordham.edu. Students will begin to receive VitalCheck prompts by mid-August. Students who need to receive it sooner should email StudentVitalCheck@fordham.edu after uploading their vaccine records to the Student Health Portal.
- The University is aware that the CDC has issued new guidance regarding masks. Fordham is monitoring this developing situation, and is prepared to quickly implement any necessary adjustments to campus health protocols based upon CDC and Department of Health advice. In the interim, the University recommends individuals wear masks off campus in indoor locations, on mass transit, and in other venues where contact with unvaccinated persons is likely.
- Ram Vans will return to full occupancy service on Monday, August 2.
- The University has discontinued PCR tests for community surveillance/routine testing. The University will perform rapid tests on individuals who have COVID-19 symptoms. Symptomatic individuals who have a negative result on a rapid test will be given a PCR test to confirm whether they have a COVID-19 infection.
For more information, please see the COVID-19 Guidelines on the web. Every issue of Five Things is archived here on our news site.
Marco Valera
Vice President for Administration & COVID-19 Coordinator
