Dear Members of the Campus Community,
In recent days, we, as well as much of the country, are beginning to see an increase in COVID cases on our campus relative to the rise in the BA.2 subvariant of Omicron. This variant, also known as the stealth variant, is far less severe than the original Omicron, but is proving to be significantly more transmissible, even to those fully vaccinated and boosted. To minimize disruptions to our ability to engage in our academic endeavors and campus operations, we are altering our mitigation protocols as we indicated we would should conditions change.
To ensure that we can fully support and maintain all of the vital programs and services that we are planning through mid-May, including Finals Week and Commencement Weekend, we are taking the following steps:
- Beginning tomorrow, Saturday, April 16, through Monday, May 16, masking will be required for all indoor activities.
- Beginning Monday, April 18, through Monday, May 16, all community members will be required to participate in weekly asymptomatic testing.
- Next week, updated guidelines to inform mitigation protocols will be published on Puget Sound’s COVID-19 dashboard. These guidelines were developed through our continuing partnership with Tegria, our public health consultants, and are responsive to the progression of the pandemic and current circumstances.
We understand that there is significant COVID fatigue, but it is important that we stay vigilant and continue to adapt as conditions change. We believe that these small, but important, steps will provide us with a greater ability to mitigate any additional spread and allow us to fully realize all of the important components of the end of the academic year.
Sincerely,
Isiaah
Isiaah Crawford, Ph.D. | President