![]() ![]() Students, faculty, and staff at the Bouvé College of Health Sciences may be asked to contribute to the testing and tracing efforts, Henderson said. Here is what our researchers are saying about COVID-19 “We are looking at doing an additional layer of contact tracing for our own community that would work in partnership with the state tracers.” “Massachusetts has been a vanguard in its development of state-wide contact tracers,” Henderson said. Northeastern has been exploring creative ways of building upon Massachusetts’ contact-tracing program to head off potential outbreaks. “One of the lessons we have learned from other countries is that successfully reopening society depends on widespread use of testing and contact tracing-by both public and private entities,” Aoun said. Safety measures that will enable the campuses to reopen include face masks, staggered business hours, increased disinfection and cleaning, use of the SafeZone app to check into campus buildings, and large-scale deployment of testing and contact tracing, said Aoun. ![]() “We’re exploring the residences very closely to be sure that we can run them in a safe manner,” said Ken Henderson, chancellor of Northeastern, who has been heading the university’s planning group to reopen the campuses.Īmong the new requirements is residential space for those who will need to safely self-isolate, Aoun said. A Northeastern team is investigating facilities that could include apartment buildings, hotels, and other academic institutions that anticipate unused housing capacity, including some that are outside Boston. The university will expand student housing into new buildings and communities to reduce residential density, said Aoun. “It’s very exciting to think through the ways that we can make sure that students have a terrific experience.” “The hybrid-flexibility model for classrooms-where some students are in the room and others can watch it live or after the fact-is something that we’re looking forward to leveraging,” said Madigan, who has been leading the university’s planning group on experience and learning. Some other hybrid classes will be taught to a combination of students who are participating either on-site or remotely-a formula that has been shown to work in other settings, said David Madigan, incoming provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Northeastern. While classroom instruction should continue to be the norm at Northeastern, Aoun said that lectures of many larger classes will be offered in both live and recorded formats. Rest assured that every aspect of how the university operates is being evaluated in the context of our new reality.” “It will require new and innovative thinking about classroom usage, residential occupancy, dining, athletics, student activities, and other elements of campus life. “This is a highly complex endeavor in fact, even more complicated than the move to remote learning and working we accomplished in March,” Aoun wrote. He emphasized the work underway to reimagine how space can be used for living, learning, and recreational activities. In his letter, President Aoun led with the university’s intention to offer on-site instruction and a residential experience for students this fall. The selection of these priority individuals will be determined by senior leadership.įor a period of time, employees may choose whether or not to return, as pre-existing health conditions, lack of available child care, and concerns about public transportation may make the immediate return to campus offices extremely difficult for some. The university will prioritize the return of faculty and staff who can best complete their work on campus, including researchers who need access to labs and scientific equipment. ![]() The phased reopening will be done in accordance with public health guidance, while maintaining low density and adopting strict protocols to reduce the risk of infection. Aoun, president of Northeastern: Our path forwardĪ group of university leaders are working on detailed plans to gradually reopen research labs and administrative offices starting as soon as later this month. ![]()
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