Return to Campus: Health and Safety

Science and research have determined that COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective in preventing virus infection in real-world conditions. We look forward to broadening immunity and increasingly positive public health as they have become widely available. All individuals aged 16 or older who live, work or study in Massachusetts are now eligible to receive them.

Therefore, in the interest both of public health and the ongoing health of our campus community, along with an increasing number of colleges and universities nationwide, Curry College requires all enrolled students on both our Milton and Plymouth campuses to be fully vaccinated before arrival in the fall. This includes Continuing Education and graduate students, as well as undergraduate resident (including international) and commuter students.

We encourage students to get their vaccine as soon as possible. All students must be fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to returning to campus. Faculty and staff members are required to be fully vaccinated by August 27.

Students who have not uploaded their vaccine status or been approved for an exemption will not be allowed to remain on campus. If you have plans to become vaccinated, are partially vaccinated or would like to apply for an exemption, please contact Enrollment Management at 617-333-2125 or enrollmentmanagement@curry.edu to discuss your options in order to facilitate your return to campus.

View the College’s vaccination rate status dashboard here.

Students must be fully vaccinated with a World Health Organization (WHO)-approved vaccine before arrival on campus. You may be vaccinated either abroad or in the United States, but you must be fully vaccinated and submit proof of vaccination to the College, or have been approved for an exemption, at least 14 days prior to returning to campus.

As of August 1, these are the seven vaccines approved for use by WHO:

• Moderna
• Pfizer/BioNTech
• Janssen (Johnson & Johnson)
• Oxford/AstraZeneca
• Serum Institute of India
• Sinopharm (Beijing)
• Sinovac

Please monitor the list online, as WHO may make changes, and plan to be vaccinated as soon as possible with one of these options.

We are unable to provide quarantine or isolation housing for students travelling to the United States ahead of the scheduled start-of-semester move-in to campus, so we ask that you make your travel and vaccination plans accordingly.

All students, faculty and staff must submit proof of vaccination to the College via the CoVerified application. Instructions for how to upload your vaccination status may be found here. Please note that you should wait until you are fully vaccinated to upload your status.

Incoming first-year students should also enter their vaccination status on their Health Forms where indicated.

If you need help downloading the CoVerified App, please click on these instructions: Curry College CoVerified Instructions.

Instructions on how to upload vaccine records.

• Take a photo of your completed COVID19 Vaccine Card
• Open the CoVerified App on your phone
• Tap on the word "Report"
• Tap on the phrase "Upload Vaccine Record"
• Fill in the quick form and upload your vaccine card photo.
• Tap the word "Submit" and you're done!

Check out our troubleshooting guidance for help with some common issues with upload.

If you are still unable to upload your status, please contact Enrollment Management at 617-333-2125 or enrollmentmanagement@curry.edu.

Please note that vaccine uploads must be approved by the College once they are submitted. Please allow 24 hours for the process to be completed.

If you are fully vaccinated, have uploaded your vaccine status to CoVerified, and it has been approved, your app will now automatically display CLEARED at all times (until approval is processed, it will continue to display RESTRICTED).

If you are NOT fully vaccinated, your app will display CLEARED as long as you have conducted the required COVID-19 testing on schedule and have a negative result in the app, and have conducted your required daily symptom checker in the app.

*Please be aware that in various places on campus, students may be asked to show the app status screen or a website printout to demonstrate their campus status as “Cleared.” Anyone seeking entry to campus must also display “Cleared” status in order to gain access to campus via the front gate, unless otherwise permitted.

As with all College vaccine requirements, exemptions may be made for medical or religious reasons.

To request an exemption from COVID-19 vaccination, you were required to fill out the application form on the MyCurry portal and submit the required documentation by July 15 for students and July 30 for faculty and staff.*

APPLICATION FORM ON MYCURRY PORTAL

All requests for exemptions will be addressed within two weeks of submission.

The College’s Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Policy may be found here.

*Please note that these deadlines have passed- please contact Health Services if you are a student or Human Resources if you are an employee for information related to late submission of the form.

The College’s vaccination policy requires that persons who are not fully vaccinated but who have received an exemption must continue to engage in Curry College’s existing COVID-19 safety protocols, including but not limited to:

• Participate in additional on-board testing.
  • All students with approved exemptions will need to produce a negative PCR test conducted off campus within 72 hours prior to moving in (residents) or arriving on campus (commuters). A rapid test will be conducted upon arrival to campus, followed by another on campus test 72 hours later (if prior tests are negative).
  • All employees with approved exemptions will need to produce a negative PCR test conducted off campus within 72 hours prior to arriving on campus (if you are arriving back for the first time), or participate in unobserved self-testing on campus the week of August 23 (if you have been coming to campus this summer).
• Participate in regular weekly surveillance testing.
• Report symptoms daily in the CoVerified app.
• Socially distance indoors as may be required.
• Wear a mask indoors and in enclosed spaces, and outdoors, if not able to socially distance.
• If you test positive or are identified as a close contact:
  • Students must enact their personal departure plans, and will be required to isolate and/or quarantine for 10 days (with testing on day 7 or 8, released on day 11). If you are a resident student and live within 200 miles of campus, you must enact your departure plan. Students who live more than 200 miles from Milton, MA may be placed in limited housing on campus. Unfortunately, room and board refunds will not be offered.
  • Employees must stay away from campus and remain isolated or quarantined away from campus for 10 days (with testing on day 7 or 8, released on day 11).

The College will initially open the academic year with an indoor mask requirement for ALL community members, regardless of vaccination status. Masks will be required in any and all indoor public spaces on campus, including residence hall common spaces. This policy will become effective as we begin to re-populate campus on Saturday, August 14.

Please remember to bring your mask(s)! Temporary masks will be available in Safety Stations installed in public spaces throughout campus, however, these temporary masks are available in these public spaces in case of emergency only. We ask that our campus community members plan to utilize their own masks whenever possible.

Please note that effective immediately, following CDC guidelines, the following masks/facial coverings are no longer allowed to be used by students, faculty or staff in campus buildings:

• Neck gaiters (if single layered. Per the CDC, double layered gaiters are permitted)
• Bandanas
• Mesh masks
• Vented masks

We understand that some members of our community may have underlying health issue that makes it difficult for them to wear a mask, or may have disabilities that makes it difficult for them to understand those wearing them. We will work with individual students with specific needs pertaining to personal protective equipment. Please contact Health Services at 617-333-2182 or the Office of Disability Services at 617-333-2990 with questions related to individual student circumstances.

Changes may be made to this policy as the semester progresses. We are closely following the developing public health situation with regard to COVID-19 variants and guidance from federal, state and local authorities, and will communicate any updates to the community promptly (noting that all protocols are subject to change based on changing campus and public health conditions).

We will be requiring onboard testing for all members of the Curry community (including all commuter and residential students, faculty and staff, regardless of vaccination status) before the start of the semester.

Fully Vaccinated Students:

Must conduct their own PCR tests off campus within the 72 hours prior to arrival, and provide a report of their negative test result to the College via the CoVerified app before arrival. Instructions on how to upload test results to the app may be found here. Free testing is available at CVS pharmacies.* Alternatively, LCG Health Wellness and Recovery is located in Jamaica Plain, and although testing times are limited, no appointments are required and results are received within a day.

Unvaccinated Students with Approved Exemptions:

Must conduct their own PCR tests off campus within the 72 hours prior to arrival, and provide a report of their negative test result to the College via the CoVerified app before arrival. Instructions on how to upload test results to the app may be found here. Free testing is available at CVS pharmacies.* Alternatively, LCG Health Wellness and Recovery is located in Jamaica Plain, and although testing times are limited, no appointments are required and results are received within a day.

A rapid PCR test on campus will be required as part of their move-in process (for residents) or upon arrival (for commuters). Resident students will be allowed to move in once a negative result has been received.

A second on-campus PCR test will be required 72 hours after arrival.

Faculty and Staff Arriving on Campus for the First Time:

Must conduct their own PCR tests off campus within the 72 hours prior to August 27, and provide a report of their negative test result to the College via the CoVerified app before arrival. Instructions on how to upload test results to the app may be found here. Free testing is available at CVS pharmacies.* Alternatively, LCG Health Wellness and Recovery is located in Jamaica Plain, and although testing times are limited, no appointments are required and results are received within a day.

Faculty and Staff Working on Campus Over the Summer:

Must conduct an unobserved self-swab test on campus the week of August 23, following summer testing protocol. This will only be offered Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday and test samples must be dropped off at Cottage from 9:00 a.m. -2:00 p.m. on these days. There will be no testing on Thursday, August 26 or Friday August 27.

*To be deemed eligible for no-cost testing at CVS, you must answer yes to one of the following questions on CVS.com, depending on which apply to you as an employee or a student:

• Are you seeking a test to prevent possible spread of COVID-19 for future travel, work or recreation (according to CDC guidelines)?
• Are you a resident in a special setting where the risk of COVID-19 transmission may be high? (This may include long-term care, correctional and detention facilities; homeless shelters; assisted-living facilities and group homes.)
• Have you been asked or referred to get tested by a health care provider?

Weekly surveillance testing throughout the semester will be required only for unvaccinated individuals who have obtained exemptions. Student testing will be conducted at Cottage, and faculty and staff will conduct unobserved self-swab testing. Testing will be offered at Cottage on Mondays and Thursdays only from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. Appointments are not required.

Please note that testing protocols may change due to changing campus or public health situations. The College will notify the Curry community promptly if that becomes the case.

Any community member who obtains a test from an external entity will have a responsibility to immediately report positive tests and negative test clearances to the College, both for tracking and reporting to the Board of Health.

• Faculty and staff should contact Human Resources at 617-333-2263 or hr@curry.edu;
• Traditional undergraduate students should contact Health Services at 617-333-2182 or healthservices@curry.edu;
• CE-Grad students should confirm with their test provider that the test provider will contact their local Board of Health (who will contact Curry College);
• ACCEL Nursing students should contact Associate Dean Nicholas Green at 617-333-2282 or nicholas.green@curry.edu;
• MSN students should contact the MSN Program Director.

Over the last academic year, the College provided a daily and then weekly testing update email to all students, faculty, staff and families throughout the semester. We also established an online dashboard for on-campus test reporting, in order to ensure that cumulative numbers, positivity statistics and comparisons were readily available to the entire community at all times. You may view the Test Reporting page and read FAQ about Test Reporting.

This year, with the College vaccine requirement and the restriction of our surveillance testing program to unvaccinated individuals only, we will not be providing email updates regularly, but will continue to update the online dashboard on weekly basis. The College will communicate campus health information to the community promptly as appropriate and needed throughout the semester.

Only unvaccinated individuals with exemptions must conduct the daily health check in CoVerified. Vaccinated community members do not need to conduct the daily health check, but should stay home if not feeling well and call their PCP for further advisement. Vaccinated students who are not feeling well are required to contact Health Services immediately for further advisement.

While we no longer require the daily symptoms screening in CoVerified for members of our community, you still need to show your CLEARED app status to the front gate attendant to be admitted into campus. Please note:

• If you are fully vaccinated and have uploaded your vaccine status to CoVerified, your app will now automatically display CLEARED at all times.
• If you are NOT fully vaccinated, your app will display CLEARED as long as you have conducted the required COVID-19 testing on schedule and have a negative result in the app, and have conducted your required daily symptom checker in the app.

*Please be aware that in various places on campus, students may be asked to show the app status screen or a website printout to demonstrate their campus status as “Cleared.” Anyone seeking entry to campus must also display “Cleared” status in order to gain access to campus via the front gate, unless otherwise permitted.

Effective Saturday, September 11, Curry College will be allowing visitors onto campus in outdoor spaces ONLY. Visitors will now be allowed to be on campus and attend outdoor events, including home athletics scrimmages, competitions and games that are scheduled to take place on campus in outdoor locations. We are pleased to welcome our friends, families and fans back to campus, with the following restrictions in place for the health and safety of all.

PLEASE NOTE:

• NO unregistered social gatherings (including tailgates or pre- or post-game gatherings) are allowed.
• Visitors are NOT allowed to enter College buildings at this time, including residence halls.*
  • *ONLY members of the on-campus Curry community on campus who are cleared in the CoVerified app will be allowed to enter College buildings. Individuals may be asked to show proof of cleared status.  As a reminder, all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, ARE REQUIRED to be masked indoors in all campus buildings.
• Visitors MUST enable the MassNotify app on their smartphones for COVID-19 exposure notification.
• Unvaccinated visitors ARE REQUIRED to wear masks outdoors and to socially distance.

This policy will be reviewed and visitor restrictions may be eased or revised in the coming weeks. Please note that accommodations for personal care attendants or disability needs will continue to be allowed access as needed.

There are no restrictions on travel away from campus currently; however, if vaccinated or unvaccinated students, faculty or staff must travel at any time during the semester for business or personal purposes, we ask that they follow Massachusetts and CDC guidance for precautions, testing, quarantine or isolation as necessary. View recommendations related to domestic or international travel here.

Study Abroad and Study Away programs will resume in Fall 2021, with adherence to all public health guidance for travelers (vaccinated and unvaccinated). Please contact Mireille McLaughlin, Director of Global and Career Services at 617-333-2967 or studyabroad@curry.edu with questions or for more information about future study away or abroad.

Despite our vaccine requirement and proven effectiveness of vaccines, given uncertainties around variants, we are still prepared to navigate the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak on our campus using best practices and guidance from state and federal agencies, as well as following our established emergency protocols including the Infectious Disease Preparedness & Response Plan developed by the College’s Emergency Preparedness Committee.

As we know cases may still occur, we are asking all resident students to have a Personal Departure Plan, should one become necessary, and residence hall spaces have been reserved should isolation and/or quarantine housing become necessary at any time. The health and safety of our entire community, especially our students, is our first priority.

If a student develops symptoms of COVID, he/she should immediately inform Health Services via phone at 617-333-2182 and arrange to be tested at the College’s Satellite Health Clinic in Cottage (which has been established solely for this purpose and will be maintained in Fall 2021). Do not go in person to any medical provider without first speaking to medical staff over the phone for advice. Students should call Health Services at 617-333-2182 (8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.). Outside business hours, call Public Safety at 617-333-2222. Faculty and staff should contact their primary care provider.

A student who tests positive for COVID-19 and who lives within 200 miles of the College will be required to enact their Personal Departure Plan to isolate or quarantine at home immediately. A symptomatic or asymptomatic student who tests positive and lives more than 200 miles from the College will be immediately assigned a single room in the designated isolation housing space, where they will be required to remain for the designated isolation period (subject to change with changing guidance from public health authorities).

Students in isolation and quarantine spaces will have their own rooms with a micro-fridge, and meals will be delivered to them on a daily basis. Academic accommodations will also be provided for students in isolation or quarantine so that they can do their course work online. The Satellite Health Clinic staff will monitor students in this space via telehealth.

Any unvaccinated students who have been exposed (close contact to an individual who tested positive) will also be required to quarantine (either at home or on campus in designated quarantine space, depending on location of residence), as may be unvaccinated members of the student’s residential community (on a case-by-case basis).

People with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms reported – ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.

People with these symptoms may have COVID-19*:

• Fever or chills
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fatigue
• Muscle or body aches
• Headache
• New loss of taste or smell
• Sore throat
• Congestion or runny nose
• Nausea or vomiting
• Diarrhea

Look for emergency warning signs for COVID-19. If someone is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:

• Trouble breathing
• Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
• New confusion
• Inability to wake or stay awake
• Bluish lips or face

* This list is not all possible symptoms. Please call your medical provider for any other symptoms that are severe or concerning to you.

This is a challenging time for us all, and we realize that students may need additional emotional, psychological, and physical support managing the difficulties that COVID-19 has created in our lives, even as we navigate resuming “normal” life. Our Counseling Center & Health Services staff remain fully available to assist students in managing their mental and physical health. To access help, students may contact Carol Moser our Administrative Assistant, either by calling the front desk at 617-333-2182 or email cmoser@curry.edu. Students will be directed to speak with the Clinician of the Day or a Nurse Practitioner who can provide support and guidance via a telehealth appointment.

The Counseling Center also offers a self-help resource for all Curry students. Students may access TAO Connect for anonymous online use at any time. TAO is free, and available with a Curry email account. Students may sign up with their Curry email by visiting the Counseling Center web page.