H1N1 Preparations

Dear Faculty,

Greetings. The excitement of a new academic year is upon us and the campus is alive with a full contingent of students once more. But with the dorms and classes now filled we have to confront a threat, which is the subject of this message.

You have read reports about the spread of the H1N1 (swine) flu worldwide and its potential impact in the coming months. A number of campuses across the country such as Emory, Washington State University, and Wake Forest University, whose classes started two to three weeks ago, have already reported significant outbreaks.

To date, two cases of H1N1 have been reported at UMass Dartmouth. But because of the likely appearance of H1N1 cases among faculty, staff and students, steps must be taken now to minimize any disruption to our students’ successful completion of their courses. It is important that all members of the faculty plan for potential situations in which they, their students, or their graduate assistants miss a number of classes/labs/studios.

In addition, faculty should anticipate that students who contract H1N1 may be unable to complete assignments, quizzes and other course requirements, and/or take scheduled examinations. In planning for these contingencies, faculty will more often than not need to revise their course syllabi and develop strategies to utilize alternative delivery modes. To assist you with planning for a campus outbreak of H1N1, I asked a committee made up of faculty from all the colleges and lead by Michael Baum, President of the Faculty Senate, and Magali Carrera, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Studies, to develop academic continuity recommendations for college, department and faculty implementation. (See below)

Sincerely,

Anthony Garro

Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs

Committee Recommendations:

1. General Faculty Planning
   All faculty should provide their students with information through a handout or by email about their policies and procedures regarding managing flu illness in their class. The following is draft language:

   As part of the federal government response to the H1N1 (Swine Flu) virus, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a nationwide public health emergency preparedness declaration on April 26, 2009. The declaration was renewed on July 23, 2009 and is currently in force. For the semester ahead, there is concern that the level and intensity of flu cases could increase substantially.

   1) For updates on the campus-wide status of flu conditions at UMass Dartmouth, please visit http://www. http://www.umassd.edu/publicaffairs/h1n1.cfm

   2) If flu conditions require cancellation of a class session or other changes for this course, I will send an email to the umassd.edu email account of all class members.

   3) Students who become ill may contact me and I will respond with information about my expectations for completion of course materials

   4) In the event of a major campus emergency at UMass Dartmouth, course requirements, deadlines, and grading percentages are subject to changes that may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances beyond the instructor’s control.

2. Academic Continuity Planning: Illness of Faculty
   • Faculty should notify their Chair/Deans of their illness.
   • Faculty should notify their students of class cancellation and plan for managing the course, if feasible; otherwise, the department should notify students.
   • Faculty/Departments should have plans for managing courses while a faculty member is out, such as preparing special assignments ahead of time, asking a colleague to fill in, etc.
   • Faculty members are urged to have exams prepared as early as possible to avoid cancellation. If exams are prepared in advance, a colleague, adjunct, or graduate student may be able to proctor the exams.
3. Academic Continuity Planning: Illness of Students
   • Faculty should be informed that the Center for Disease Control recommends that Institutions of Higher Education refrain from requiring written medical confirmation during this outbreak.
   • Students and faculty should protect one another by observing social distancing recommendations made by the CDC, including remaining isolated until fever-free for at least 24 hours without fever-reducing medication.
   • Faculty members are encouraged to:
     • Be flexible during this time regarding make-up exams and assignments. Under no circumstances should penalties for non-attendance be sufficiently rigid that students feel compelled to attend class when ill and/or contagious.
     • Remind students of expectations for absences.
     • Explain to students that they may complete the assignments electronically to make up for class absences. They will be responsible for completing all missed assignments, but they may need additional time.
     • Inform students that if in exceptional circumstances they are too ill to return to class and miss more than a specified number of course meetings, at the student’s request and the instructor’s discretion, a grade of "I"/incomplete may be assigned in accordance with Academic Regulation found in the catalog under Grades and Grading system http://www.umassd.edu/catalog/undergraduate/2003-2004/welcome.cfm.
     • Refer students to information regarding course withdrawals, should they be absent for a prolonged period. http://www.umassd.edu/studenthandbook/academicregs/academicwork.cfm
4. Academic Continuity Planning: Suspension of all Classes
   • Decisions regarding suspension of classes and University activities rest with the Chancellor and Provost in consultation with appropriate University, city, county, state and federal guidelines. Guidance to faculty will be generated accordingly.
   • Each faculty member will need to consider the development and communication of a course continuity plan. Your course continuity planning may use the following to provide course materials and online interaction with students.
     • Email (COIN)
     • myCourses
     • Other online options such as a blog, wiki, or posting material to Library eReserves

For more information, please visit http://www.umassd.edu/cits/instructional/development/faculty/faculty_academic_planning.cfm