Students: If you test positive at any point during the semester, regardless of whether you are a residential or commuter student, you must notify the Health Service, which will provide isolation instructions and support.

Employees: If you test positive at any point during the semester, you must notify your direct supervisor and Human Resources at humres@drew.edu. You will also review sick time and return to work policies.

Positive student or employee cases will be responsible for notifying their own close contacts. Instructions will be provided. The CDC defines a close contact as anyone within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes during a 24-hour period. The Health Service will follow up with any positive student cases.

The CDC defines a close contact as anyone within six feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes during a 24-hour period. The Health Service will follow up with any positive student cases.

In August 2022, the CDC updated their health and safety protocols for close contacts, removing the quarantine component. Regardless of vaccination status, close contacts should wear a mask for 10 days, monitor symptoms, and get tested at least five days after exposure. Positive cases must follow proper reporting protocols.

Both isolation and quarantine are public health measures that involve separating people from one another in order to prevent the spread of illness. Isolation is separating those who are sick (they either have symptoms or have tested positive for COVID-19) from others who are not sick to prevent it from spreading. Quarantine separates and restricts movement of those who were exposed to someone with COVID-19, to see if they become sick.

First, you should isolate yourself from others as much as possible. Do not go to in-person class, the Commons, the gym, or other public places where you could expose others to illness. Next, contact the Health Service to discuss your symptoms. Depending on your symptoms, a COVID-19 test or other testing may be recommended.

COVID-19 testing is available at the Health Service for students who have symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, have been exposed to someone with COVID-19, or if needed for other reasons. Students are also encouraged to keep at-home test kits on hand to test when needed. Click here to order free at home testing kits. If you get tested for COVID-19 outside of Drew or perform an at-home test and the result is positive, please inform the Health Service.

As with any illness, you should follow standard precautions to prevent spreading infection to others. This includes staying out of class and in-person activities until you are fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medications and washing your hands frequently. Always follow the advice of a healthcare professional if you consult with one. Individuals experiencing any symptoms of a respiratory illness are strongly encouraged to wear a mask.

The following testing protocols will be in place:

Pre-arrival/Arrival: There will not be mandatory pre-arrival testing prior to students reporting to campus. However, students are encouraged to test before coming to campus. If positive, students should follow isolation protocols, outlined below, and report the positive result to the Health Service. Negative test results do not need to be reported.

Surveillance: There will not be weekly surveillance testing throughout the semester, regardless of vaccination status. Accordingly, the University will suspend use of the COVID-19 dashboard.

Symptomatic: The Health Service will continue to perform diagnostic testing for students with symptoms or for those exposed throughout the semester. Employees who are symptomatic are encouraged to test themselves.

All visitors to campus, including event attendees, must comply with campus guidelines regarding masks. The current policy does not require masks other than when visiting the Health Service or when following isolation and quarantine protocols.

Faculty, staff, and student conveners may require masks to be worn at their discretion in their classroom, lab, office, or event location. Conveners must notify students of a mask requirement in advance, and students are required to comply with any such direction.

While masks are no longer a requirement, the University wholeheartedly supports anyone who continues to wear a mask for any reason. We are instituting this policy change with the expectation that all members of the Drew community will be understanding of individual situations and choices.

All visitors to campus, including event attendees, must comply with campus guidelines regarding masks. The current policy does not require masks other than when visiting the Health Service, when following isolation and quarantine protocols, or at the request of a convener of a class, lab, gathering or meeting.

Drew students and employees were required to be vaccinated for COVID-19, and receive a booster by March 31, 2022, in an effort to keep everyone healthy. While visitors and event attendees will not be required to provide proof of vaccination unless they are overnight guests in a residence hall, we strongly encourage anyone visiting campus or attending an on-campus event to be fully vaccinated.

When a student attending an in-person course is required to quarantine or isolate, the student should notify their professor immediately. Faculty will work directly with the student to determine what type of accommodations work best for that course.

Fall 2022 nycTRECs will be conducted in person and in New York. Adherence to Drew’s vaccination policy is particularly important for our nycTREC participants, as many of our on-site partners in New York may mandate fully vaccinated visitors. We will continue to monitor the situation per Drew’s health and safety guidelines, as well as all the other resources we use to track conditions in New York. We are prepared to adapt if the conditions on campus or in the city require that we do so.

Please contact the Center for Global Education at globaled@drew.edu with any questions.