Prov Office announces faculty will now be told about positive student Covid tests

I have no idea why they refused to do this for so long, but my guess is bad legal advice from our transparency-phobic GCO:

Dear colleagues,

Beginning today, Corona Corps will notify instructors if a student in your class has recently tested positive for COVID-19.

If you receive a notification, it does not mean other students in your class or you are at elevated risk of infection, and no action is required on your part. Students who are identified as close contacts will be notified directly by Corona Corps. Instructors identified as close contacts will be notified by Human Resources. All-class notifications will be sent by Corona Corps only if a class exposure is possible.

For privacy reasons, you will not be provided with the name of the student, and instructors should not forward the notification or send an all-class message about the case. 

As a reminder, in the context of wide levels of vaccination (>97%), a mask mandate, and extensive surveillance testing that yields low positivity rates (<2%), our campus and classrooms remain at very low risk for transmission.

Additional information and guidance is available at COVID Containment Plan for Classes, including:

• Instructors should remind students to introduce themselves to their classroom neighbors at the start of each class as this greatly facilitates contact tracing, should it be needed in specific classes. 
• Instructors should submit the Case and Contact Form if a student informs them that they have tested positive for COVID-19, have been identified as a close contact, or if a student is symptomatic. This form helps to initiate the Corona Corps’ outreach to specific students.
• Vaccinated, asymptomatic students who have been identified as close contacts can continue to attend class. However, these students should be reminded to self-monitor daily and to be tested 3-5 days after exposure. 
• Remind students to conduct daily symptom self-checks and to not come to class if they have symptoms.
• Make students aware of how they can access course content and make up missed assignments.
• Enforce the mask requirement in your classes.
• Remember to stay six feet away from others if you elect to teach without a mask.

If you have any questions about the notification process, contact Jeffrey Measelle, Faculty Liaison for Corona Corps, at [email protected].

Sincerely,Janet Woodruff-BordenExecutive Vice Provost