As the spring 2021 semester draws near, we are beginning to welcome our students back to campus (in a phased approach throughout the coming week).  As shared in prior communication, students will be required to participate in campus baseline COVID-19 pooled saliva testing prior to moving into their residence halls.  All students, including students residing off-campus and coming to campus for any reason, as well as faculty and staff coming to campus, must be tested on or before Thursday, Jan. 28, in order to receive test results before classes begin on Monday, Feb. 1, 2021.

Weekly Surveillance Testing: Per guidance received from SUNY this week, SUNY Oswego (beginning Feb. 1) will conduct weekly surveillance testing throughout the spring 2021 semester.  As soon as we conclude baseline testing, all students and employees coming to campus for any reason must participate in surveillance testing at least once each week throughout the spring 2021 semester.  Testing is by appointment only. Students and employees will be tested separately. Please refer to the Box Office schedule.

Per SUNY’s amended policy for testing (Jan. 19, 2021) “campuses shall test, on at least a weekly basis, 100 percent of all students, faculty, and staff who live on campus and/or plan to be on campus regularly (including instruction, co-curricular activities, and meetings). Those who have had a positive PCR test should not participate in surveillance testing for 90 days from the date of their positive test. Upon conclusion of the 90 days, they should be included in regular surveillance testing per the campus plan. Vaccine recipients shall also be included in surveillance testing.”

Vaccine Eligibility Guidelines: SUNY Oswego is supportive of all members of our campus community getting vaccinated as soon as possible and in accordance with the New York State (NYS) guidelines for individual eligibility.  As you may know, NYS is currently vaccinating eligible New Yorkers who are in Phase 1a and Phase 1b population groups, which include our University Police officers, frontline health services and COVID testing staff, and more recently “In-person college instructors.”

We encourage our faculty, who are teaching face-to-face classes, to get vaccinated and direct them to NYS COVID-19 vaccine website for guidance on vaccine eligibility and more on the phased distribution of the vaccine.

Looking forward, we are in discussions with local and state officials to offer the SUNY Oswego campus as a host vaccination site where the vaccine can be administered on campus—both in closed and open Points of Distribution (PODs) for our campus and the wider Oswego community.

We will keep you posted on any further developments as they relate to testing, vaccination and Oswego’s Spring Forward 2021 Plan.  Stay safe and see you all soon.

Warm regards,

Deborah F. Stanley
President