After careful evaluation, the College has decided to extend the precautionary campus pause until Friday, November 13 and continue our plan of finishing the semester with in-person classes.  This will allow our medical team to continue our comprehensive testing plan for the community, which has tested more than 2,000 students since last Friday. This is to address the recent uptick in virus spread, much like the rest of the country has experienced. Following the guidance below will help us all achieve our goal of a successful on-ground conclusion to the fall term.

Pause Guidelines

• All classes will be held remotely
• All on- and off-campus activities, including gatherings of any kind, are suspended
• For public health reasons, students are encouraged to limit their interactions to their “pod” (e.g. roommates or immediate housemates)
• Outdoor individual or small group “pod” activities, with appropriate public health measures in place, are permitted (e.g. taking a walk around campus, eating outside, socializing with roommates, etc.)
• Students must stay within their own room/apartment in their residence facility. Students are prohibited from visiting any other room, traditional residence hall, apartment, or townhouse. 
• In-person dining is paused and meal plans are grab-and-go only.
• All athletic team training sessions are canceled.
• The James J. McCann Recreation Center will remain closed to recreational activity
• Students must remain on campus and avoid traveling unless such travel is directed by Marist health professionals or staff
• Only officially approved visitors are allowed on campus

Pre-Departure Testing and Thanksgiving Guidance

As we plan for the end of the residential component of the semester and the start of Thanksgiving, it is important to keep in mind the following:

1. As noted in our email on October 30th, the College will provide COVID-19 testing for all students prior to the Thanksgiving break. This is underway this week; students either have or will receive an email with their testing time and information about logistics. Marist is providing this service to students and their families as an additional safety measure as we head into the semester break. Because we cannot guarantee how close a particular person's test will occur to their travel plans, we encourage students to also be tested immediately before they leave or when they return home if they feel it is necessary. Testing sites can be found here. We also recommend that students consider quarantining for seven days after returning home. We want everyone healthy, rested, and ready for what we hope will be a terrific Spring semester.
2. Please follow the guidelines the College has provided throughout this term on safe practices for any travel by maintaining the public health practices of mask-wearing, social distancing, and good personal hygiene.  In addition, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released information on holiday gatherings, which specifically provides recommendations for college students returning home. As you plan your holiday travel, we highly recommend you review the CDC’s guidance. 
3. We want to remind students that because of the early end of the residential component of the Fall semester for health and safety reasons, the College will not have housing available during this extended period. Students will need to plan for other accommodations. To request assistance with planning or to address other concerns please contact housing@marist.edu.
4. It has come to our attention that some students are making plans to depart the campus prior to November 24. If that is the case, students must notify the Office of Housing and Residential Life at housing@marist.edu.

As always, information about COVID-19 cases related to the College is available on our dashboard, which is updated daily, generally by 5:00 pm. If you see any Marist community member violating our COVID-19 related Code of Conduct, please call (845) 575-MASK.