Don't let Labor Day ruin your fall

Posted: September 4, 2020

Dear Students,

Dr. Anthony Fauci offered a timely piece of guidance to college students earlier this week: “Don’t let Labor Day ruin your fall.”

He was recognizing what most of us already know about the weekend ahead – it will be filled with a lot of opportunities to let our guard down.

We are going to gather, we are going to want to relax, we might even be embracing friends or family we haven’t seen in a while.

Please do so cautiously.

As Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, cautions: don’t be reckless.

So far, so many of you have been doing the right things in the right way. You’re wearing your masks, you’re washing your hands, you’re watching your distance.

It is a large reason why Gannon University has stayed open.

A long weekend like this one brings inherent risks of complacency and a false sense of security.

What we have discovered so far in the first four weeks of classes is that our exposures to COVID-19 have largely come from moments of weakness – the room visits by friends, the off-campus road trips, or family members who are infected.

There are safe ways to visit with family and friends this holiday. Do those.

For those sticking close to campus – and we hope that’s most of you – remember that the tolerance for neglecting safety behaviors will be low. Campus Police and Safety has additional staff for the weekend ahead.

Remember, also, that the university is limiting social gatherings at off-campus residences to no more than 15 people, including the residents of the home. If a social gathering has more than 15 people in attendance, the event will be closed and could result in the suspension of the individuals renting the house as well as university sanctions for those attending. Social gatherings of 15 or fewer people that are considered to be unsafe (no masks being worn, too many people for the space, etc.) will be broken up by campus police officers and participants will be required to meet with the student conduct office. 

In on-campus housing, gatherings of larger numbers will result in immediate and significant disciplinary action for all in attendance.

These are not normal times.

In the middle of a pandemic, we all must make accommodations – students as well as faculty and staff.

Now is not the time to relax on safety. Keep filling out the LiveSafe survey, keep taking your temperature, keep being vigilant, and keep your distance from those who are outside your “pod” of trusted – and healthy – friends and family.

The Gannon community has done a terrific job getting to Labor Day.

Let’s not let lapses this weekend ruin our chances of getting to Thanksgiving with us all on campus.

Thank you,

Brian Nichols
Vice President, Student Development and Engagement