Dear Marist community members,

We are writing to let you know that, after reviewing the most recent data, Marist will be continuing our precautionary campus pause through next Wednesday, March 31.  This is disappointing news, especially for students, but this additional time is critical to ensure that we are appropriately safeguarding the health of our community.  Thanks to your cooperation, we are starting to see some encouraging trends in the data, but we are not yet in a position to safely resume activities on campus.

This is not the spring semester any of us had hoped for.  Our students, who have faced so many challenges over the last year, are once again being asked to restrict their activities to help protect their community.  Please know that this decision is not taken lightly.  We know how difficult and disruptive this pause has been for our students.  Be assured that, as soon as it is safe to do so, this pause will be lifted. We all have a role to play, and if we work together, we will be able to achieve our goal and get back to more normal campus life.

Dining Options:

During the temporary pause, there are many available on-campus dining options. Walk-up dining services remain open, although dine-in seating will be unavailable for the duration of the precautionary pause. Below is a list of on-campus dining options currently open to students:

• Walk-up dining services are available at the Murray Student Center Dining Hall, North End Dining, Donnelly Café, and Cabaret.
• GrubHub takeout is available at Murray Student Center Dining Hall, North End Dining, Donnelly Café, Cabaret, and Hancock Brew.
• GrubHub delivery is available at:
  • Murray Student Center DiningHall2Go menu (Zone 1 Only): Daily 4:00 pm - 7:30 pm
  • Cabaret (Zones 1-5): Friday, Saturday, Sunday 5:00 pm - 9:30 pm
  • North End Dining (Zones 1-3): Monday - Friday 4:00 pm - 8:30 pm
  • Marketplace (Zones 1-5): Monday-Thursday, Saturday & Sunday 5:00 pm - 9:15 pm
• Weekend Food Trucks and Pop-Ups will continue at North End Dining, adjacent to the outdoor patio.  Please wear a mask and use safe social distancing practices, including staying with your immediate household or pod, when enjoying these options.

As a reminder, approved student activities during the temporary pause include:

• Reporting for surveillance/targeted testing, unless in isolation or quarantine.
• Engaging in outdoor activities and exercise with your immediate household or pod using safe social distancing practices. Examples of acceptable activities include walking; jogging; biking; skateboarding, hiking, throwing a frisbee, football, baseball, softball, etc.
• Essential errands such as grocery shopping, attending medical appointments, internships, and on & off-campus jobs.

During the pause the following limitations will continue:

• All classes will be remote.
• The McCann Recreation Center will be fully closed.
• No in-person gatherings are permitted outside of immediate households/pods.
• No visitors or guests will be permitted in ANY residence hall.
• Division I Athletics programs will continue to be suspended.
• All College-organized in-person activities will be suspended.
• Specific residence halls may be notified of individual measures that may be put into place (e.g., precautionary quarantine, targeted testing)

How Can You Help?
We need everyone to stay vigilant and committed to protecting the pack so we can work towards keeping our community open, maintaining in-person instruction, and continuing the on-campus activities we enjoy. Report for surveillance testing when you are called. If you see any Marist community member violating our COVID-19-related Code of Conduct, please call (845) 575-MASK.

If you need to speak with a counselor, services are available and can be arranged by calling (845) 575-3314 or by emailing counseling.services@marist.edu. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis after-hours, you can contact the Office of Security at (845) 471-1822 to access the on-call counselor.

As a reminder, we will continue to update the Marist community on the temporary campus pause – and when it will end – as more information becomes available. As always, information about COVID-19 cases related to the College is available on our dashboard, which is updated frequently. Thank you for your continued cooperation.

Sincerely,
Geoff Brackett, Executive Vice President
Thom Wermuth, Vice President for Academic Affairs
Deb DiCaprio, Vice President for Student Affairs