Voluntary testing to be offered ahead of Thanksgiving break

Posted: October 22, 2020

Dear Students,

Now is the time to start thinking of Thanksgiving – and planning for a healthy transition from your time on campus to time with family.

Only five weeks remain until the holiday and our family gatherings. Classes end in four weeks and we have one week of finals.

You should want to go home COVID free while also avoiding spending part of these last weeks in quarantine, and we want that for you, too.

Let’s avoid what happened this week at St. John Fisher College and at the University of Michigan, both of which transitioned to remote learning for the rest of the semester after large outbreaks on campus.

We are all working to not let that happen here by wearing masks, washing our hands, and watching our distance.

For the next few weeks, we are also asking you to continue to limit your travel.

As announced last Friday, Gannon University is discouraging unnecessary travel out of the home counties for each of our campuses (Erie and Hillsborough counties). We expect you to report your essential travel and will require that you be tested on your return, and we will restrict your access to in-person classes until we are confident you do not present a health threat to others. If you travel outside these counties, please report your travel through LiveSafe – using the yellow box labeled “Report Coronavirus Positive/Concern.”

If you must travel, you will need to quarantine in place on your return to campus and until you receive a negative test result. Typically, you will be tested on the first business day you’re back. Results should be available within 24 hours. If you travel to a hot state or use an airline on the journey, you will need to test twice – on Day 1 and again on Day 5 after your return. You will be restricted in your movements on campus until both results come back negative.

In light of reports of large group gatherings that have occurred where attendees did not wear masks, we are also offering voluntary COVID-19 testing for those who have attended those events. Please also be vigilant in monitoring your health and reporting any symptoms of COVID-19 and alert the Health Center if you develop any.  

Looking forward to Thanksgiving, we will begin offering our on-campus residents COVID-19 tests Nov. 4-6. Why then? Well, if you or a friend tests positive it will give you the chance to isolate or quarantine on campus before the semester ends and you return home. In the two weeks after that we will make testing available to commuters, faculty and staff. We will explain more about this in an upcoming Maroon Minute.

Our ability to contain the spread of COVID-19 depends on everyone doing their part. For now, keep executing on your healthy behaviors and if you do have symptoms, please stay home or stay put and reach out to the Health Center.

Let’s get safely to Thanksgiving together and rejuvenate from a busy semester, not from an illness that may be avoided.

In peace,

Dr. Keith Taylor
President