September 29, 2020

Happy Tuesday, everyone,

I am pleased to share this information, which just went to students living in two of our residence halls that had been quarantined last week: pending compliance with testing protocols, the quarantines in both of these residence halls have been lifted. Specifically, all students in Summit and Braiden Halls who tested negative last week are no longer in quarantine and may resume their normal schedules, including going to class or work.

This is obviously wonderful news for our impacted students and for their instructors, supervisors, friends and classmates whom we know missed them and were worried about them. It is also wonderful news about the success of our testing and quarantine protocols. And this rapid end to the quarantine could not have happened without the dedication and hard work of literally hundreds of members of the CSU community, from the students who stuck it out in their rooms to the employees who prepared and delivered them meals, addressed their other needs, helped them get tested, and processed those tests. Our people truly make the difference in our community, every day, and especially during times like these.

Going forward, I know that many of you have questions about our COVID-19 testing protocols and other health precautions. So I am very pleased to invite all of you to participate in two different COVID-19 focused Town Halls scheduled for later this week, one hosted by the City of Fort Collins the other hosted by CSU. The specific details for each event, including how to join, are below.

*****

Oct. 1, 6-7 p.m., Community COVID-19 Briefing

Working Together for a Healthy Community – Community COVID Briefing Oct. 1  in CSU’s SOURCE details information about the upcoming event.

Panelists to include:

• Darin Atteberry – City Manager, City of Fort Collins
• Tom Gonzales – Public Health Director, Larimer County
• Joyce McConnell – President, Colorado State University

Community leaders will provide the latest COVID updates on cases, testing and surveillance at CSU and in Fort Collins and Larimer County, including the ways the City of Fort Collins, CSU and Larimer County are working together to protect public health by slowing the spread of the virus.

Members of the public can submit questions live during the briefing. The Zoom webinar is limited to 500 people. Those not planning to ask questions can watch the live stream on YouTube.

Participate live: https://zoom.us/j/98809853430
YouTube live stream link: https://youtu.be/_H2gjARofnc

*****

Oct. 2, 9-10 a.m., CSU Data and Testing Town Hall

Panelists:

• Joyce McConnell, President
• Mary Pedersen, Provost & Executive Vice President
• Lori Lynn, Co-Chair of the Pandemic Preparedness Team; Executive Director, CSU Health Network
• Alan Rudolph, Vice President of Research
• Jeannine Reiss, Public Health Administrator
• Carol Wilusz, Director, Molecular Quantification Core; Director, Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program; Professor, Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology
• Jude Bayhem, Assistant Professor, Department of Agriculture and Resource Economics
• Mark Zabel, Professor & Assoc. Director, Prion Research Center; Research Associate Dean, CVMBS

Moderated by: Marc Barker, Co-Chair of the Pandemic Preparedness Team and Director of Adult Learner and Veteran Services

This Town Hall will be open to any member of the CSU community: students, faculty, and staff. The expert panel will answer questions live, and also welcomes questions submitted in advance here. Please note that depending on attendance, we may not be able to address every question asked.

*****

I look forward to sharing with all of you the latest information about our proactive, collaborative, and transparent management of the COVID-19 pandemic at CSU and in partnership with our community.

Warmly,
Joyce