Move-in for undergraduate students during the coronavirus pandemic will be strictly scheduled and emphasize coronavirus testing, according to an email sent Tuesday night by Executive Director of Residential Life and Housing Services Laurel Contomanolis.
If students are driving directly to campus from their homes, they may provide results from an RT-PCR test taken 1-3 days before they arrive. Only RT-PCR tests will be accepted. All other students will be tested upon arrival.
Students will be required to complete a mandatory safety training course on Blackboard prior to moving in. As of July 15, the course is not yet available.
Move in for all students will start Monday, August 17 and continue until Tuesday, August 25, with priority given to first year students until August 20. Undergraduate classes begin on Wednesday, August 26. Students will be required to sign up for a move-in timeslot on the reslife website. Students should arrive at the corner of Library Road and Intercampus Drive an hour before their move-in time, with only one additional person to assist with move-in, according to the email.
From there, helpers will be instructed to wait in their vehicles at a nearby parking lot while all students proceed to the Goergen Athletic Center to receive their keys, and to either get tested or show testing documentation. Students will then return to their vehicles and will be directed to their housing, where they will have one hour to bring their belongings to their rooms. Sanitized carts will be available. Following move-in, helpers will have to leave campus immediately.
Students will be allowed to move in prior to their test results. Results will be available within 24 hours, and if positive the students will be “relocated to an isolation area,” according to the email.
“Roommates in double rooms will not move in together before both individuals have a negative test result,” Contomanolis wrote.
If a student is arriving from a state restricted by the New York state travel advisory, they will have the option of entering the state 14 days prior to move-in to quarantine, or waiting until the state permits entry without a quarantine.
The University is working to assist families choosing to quarantine with discounted rates at local hotels and temporary housing on campus, according to their July 10 message, “Guidance for students, families regarding ‘hot spot’ quarantine requirement.” More information on the University’s restart plans can be found on the University’s coronavirus planning page.
