We hope you enjoyed an enjoyable spring break—welcome back to campus!  As we enter the second half of the Spring 2022 semester, we are pleased that our collective efforts to maintain public health at Marist have been successful to date. Following our recommended protocols of vaccination and boosters, testing when appropriate, respect for individual decisions about masking, and ensuring individuals monitor their health and stay home when sick have proven critical to maintaining our signature on-campus experience. We are happy to report that, because of these measures and the low positivity rates in the region and New York State, we will be making important adjustments to our COVID-19 operating protocols for the remainder of the semester.   

As always, we are making these changes based on the recommendations of our Medical Advisory Group, and in alignment with important designations from New York State, which removed the airborne infectious disease designation of COVID-19 via the HERO Act on Friday, March 18th. As a result, we are comfortable in reducing some of our protocols at present, recognizing that we could reinstate them if necessary.  

Effective Thursday, March 31, 2022, Marist will: 

• Update the COVID-19 dashboard weekly each Monday  
• Suspend daily health surveys for employees. Members of the community are encouraged to continue to monitor their own health and stay home when feeling sick. 
• Restore use of the “red asterisk” system for judicial holds and pause use of “COVID Clear” for tracking COVID-19 compliance measures. 
• No longer conduct COVID-19 contact tracing and case investigation. 
• No longer monitor quarantine or isolation. Students and employees must self-quarantine or isolate according to New York State guidelines. 
• Eliminate the guest attestations to visit campus. 
• Conduct asymptomatic COVID-19 testing for students by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, email COVIDsurveillance.testing@marist.edu. 

The Marist community has shown tremendous strength and resilience in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic throughout a challenging two-year period. Moving forward, Marist will continue to require that all students, faculty, and staff stay “up-to-date" with their COVID-19 vaccine, as defined by the CDC. And while the current status of the pandemic allows us to lessen restrictions, we must remain flexible should public health conditions change. 

Best wishes for a successful conclusion to the spring term.