Dear LAS faculty and staff,
Campus is slowly awakening after our mid-March departure. As the colors of summer blaze brightly across campus, familiar faces begin to appear.
It is a busy time, as university, college and department leaders work towards President Wintersteen’s target date of August 3 to have campus ready for the fall semester. I can’t thank all of you enough for your continued engagement in working through myriads of details of how we will teach this fall, use our offices and other spaces and engage our students, all while keeping our community as safe and healthy as possible. Thank you for your commitment, your flexibility and your willingness to reinvent everything we do.
As announced by the president, face coverings are now required on campus in classrooms, offices, and other areas where physical distancing is not possible. It’s important for all of us to model healthy and caring behaviors – for the health of each and every one of us and of our community. Soon the Cyclones Care campaign will pop up across campus, encouraging everyone to:
- Wear a face covering
- Wash or sanitize hands often
- Maintain physical distancing of at least 6 feet (2 meters)
- Stay home when ill
The university also established a self-reporting process for faculty, staff and students who test positive for COVID – 19. A special form will assist contact tracing efforts and connect individuals with support.
Another substantial development is the decision to require all undergraduate and graduate students to own or borrow a laptop for use during the academic year. The university’s IT department established an information page about the requirement and our college IT department has additional information on LAS-specific recommendations.
If you will teach a course in the fall, please remember that all courses must be developed within Canvas, and all new courses must utilize the new ISU Canvas template. A recent Inside Iowa State article provides more details on the template and training.
I hope you find some time this month to rest and recharge. Thank you for your extra attention to communications, your contingency planning, and your patience and flexibility.
With my best wishes,
Beate