A message from Dean Douglas Elmendorf
To Members of the ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø Community,
Fifteen ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø students have tested positive for COVID so far this week—still a small percentage of our students, but more than in all previous weeks of the semester combined and notably high relative to other Harvard schools this week.
Contact tracing has found that the students who became infected did so not in class but primarily in two large, off-campus parties where masks were not worn.
If infections continue to rise, we may lose our chance to learn and work together in person.
Therefore, beginning immediately:
- Please do not participate in indoor group activities with other students unmasked at any time.
- Please do not come to campus if you are not feeling well.
- To eat inside at ÌÇÐÄvlog¹ÙÍø, you must sit alone at a table—and, as before, only in an allowed dining area and with your mask on except while actively eating or drinking. We do not know of any transmission so far in our dining areas, but with more people now having the infection, we want to reduce the risk of transmission. If conditions improve, we will relax this new restriction; if conditions worsen, we may stop indoor dining altogether and look at other ways to contain risk.
As a community committed to serving the public good, protecting the health of our friends and families (as well as our own health) should be at the front of our minds. Thank you.
Best,
Doug