Update to Staff: Plans for Being Safe on Campus

Dear Colleagues,

Yesterday, the Chancellor shared details regarding our operations during the pandemic. The overarching goal is to keep the Pitt community as safe and healthy as possible while maximizing our ability to advance our mission. Planning is conducted within the Resilience Framework, which combines constant monitoring of conditions on our campuses and communities with a set of universal health rules and foundational principles to help keep us safe and guide our operations.

Three operational postures drive our decision making. Like Pennsylvania’s red-yellow-green phases, these postures define what is allowable across our people, places and programs. When at highest risk, decisions are made by the University’s senior leadership. When risk is lower, most decision making happens within schools and other responsibility centers.

While our risk posture will never exceed that of the state’s, we will customize our operational posture based on the risk we’re measuring in our communities. On July 13, we plan to move from the emergency posture that all of our campuses have been in since March to the Elevated Risk Posture on the Pittsburgh campus, and to the Guarded Risk Posture for our campuses in Bradford, Greensburg, Johnstown and Titusville.

We are working to enable students to return to campus for the fall semester. To support this effort, we will de-densify our residence halls, classrooms, and facilities. In addition, we ask that faculty and staff continue to work from home (or remotely) for the duration of the pandemic, except when their presence on campus is needed to support students, research, and other essential operations. Staggered schedules and other strategies will be used to help limit the number of people on campus at any one time. Guidance regarding these strategies will become available in the coming weeks.

The University’s Healthcare Advisory Group established universal health rules to help keep us safe. These rules underpin the principles for planning and operations throughout all of our campuses. Highlights of these rules include:

  • Face coverings are required to be worn while on campus
  • Physical distancing is necessary, with a minimum of six feet between people when possible
  • Time with others should be limited, especially in small spaces like elevators and bathrooms
  • Gatherings should be held remotely, although Guarded Risk and Elevated Risk Postures allow for some limited-capacity events if physical distancing guidelines can be met
  • Hands should be washed frequently and thoroughly with soap and water for at least 20 seconds

While we have been planning for the return since late May and have accomplished a great deal, there is still much more work to be done. More guidance is in development now, including additional information regarding:

  • How we will bring employees back to our campuses when necessary, and how individuals will work during the pandemic
  • How our Flex@Pitt instructional model will be implemented, including details regarding the technology and spaces to be used to support implementation
  • Plans for virus testing, symptom monitoring, quarantining, and contact tracing
  • Accommodations for vulnerable populations
  • Alternative enrollment options for international students, and guidance for safe international travel

Additional details will be shared weekly, starting next week. The most up-to-date information is available at coronavirus.pitt.edu.

With appreciation for your support and contributions to our pandemic response, I offer my best wishes and hopes for continued safety and good health.

Cheers,

David N. DeJong
Vice Chancellor for Human Resources
Acting Senior Vice Chancellor for Business and Operations