Dear colleagues,
We want to begin by thanking you for your dedication, commitment to ensuring that ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä’s students can continue their education, and for the professional and personal sacrifices you have made on behalf of the university over the last several months. ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä Boulder would not be weathering this storm without you.Ìý
This week the chancellor announced the university’s Road Map to Fall 2020. This is the blueprint for the entire campus–students, faculty, staff and community–to help provide stability and guiding principles as we continue our mission. It consists of three components:Ìý
- Creating a COVID-19-ready campusÌý
- Academic instruction
- Resource alignment
The road map and the implementation are designed to keep our community safe, ensure access and quality for our students, and move our community forward to fulfill our public mission.Ìý
The road map starts with a fundamental premise, which is that we must begin with public health and create a safe campus environment while allowing ¶¶ÒõÂÃÐÐÉä students to continue their educational journeys. The road map was developed in consultation with epidemiological and public health experts and was informed by more than 1,500 points of input from students, faculty, staff, parents and community members.Ìý
Our ability to maintain campus health and safety starts with our commitment to significantly reduce the opportunities for person-to-person contacts on campus that can spread infection. We are confident that we can achieve this reduction through a combination of measures that include education and training on how to safely interact on campus, density reduction in classrooms and in workspaces, building access and foot traffic controls, wearing masks and personal protective equipment, good sanitation practices, hand-washing and other measures. We will continuously update safety elements to account for state and federal recommendations and new best practices arising from the latest research.Ìý
We know many of you have questions about returning to work. As we prepare for the fall, many faculty and staff will continue to work remotely, while others will return to the campus for in-person work and instruction. When faculty and staff return, they will need to obtain their supervisor’s approval, complete Skillsoft COVID-19 training and observe COVID-19-safe practices while on campus. Each unit will need to determine which of its faculty and staff need to return to campus, and we will be releasing detailed return-to-work guidance in the coming weeks.Ìý
Achieving our road map goals will require investments in health and safety protocols, technology, faculty and staff support, and student success and access. We will also be required to make investments in testing, contact tracing, masks and other personal protective equipment, and sanitation. We will make changes to classrooms and workspaces across campus. We will follow state guidelines to protect members of our community who have increased vulnerability. We will make these investments because it is crucial that we safeguard our community.
We will now rely on the comprehensive implementation teams–including many of you–that Chancellor DiStefano has empowered to execute the plans in the road map. The implementation teams include campus leaders who are experts in their fields. The chancellor has authorized them to work with you and make the decisions necessary for us to prepare for the fall semester. We ask you to work closely with the implementation teams to identify solutions, remove barriers and align resources.Ìý
The work of these teams will succeed or fail based on creativity, cooperation and flexibility that faculty and staff bring to this vital moment. We may have to step out of our comfort zones in terms of what we teach or how we do our jobs, with safety being our top priority. At all times, we should make this communication collegial, clarifying and supportive–and of course, always focused on our students and the university mission.Ìý
This is a critical moment for the preservation and, indeed, the elevation of our mission to advance the public good. Our students cannot afford to be stalled in their academic progress or be denied access to as full an academic experience as we can offer safely; it is a matter of both access and equity. Likewise, our research and scholarship are more vital than ever–critical to solving local and global challenges, including those presented by COVID-19.Ìý
This moment is the fulfillment of our mission and the realization of our compact with each other and with the public we serve. We invite you, in carrying out this work, to do so with renewed dedication to your work, your disciplines and your colleagues. If you have not, please visit the Road Map to Fall 2020 website and familiarize yourself with the plan, and feel free to offer any questions as we navigate this process together.Ìý
We know there’s a lot of uncertainty, but we’re grateful for your trust, collegiality and collaboration. You continue to place the university and mission first, and because of this, we will be successful.
Provost Russell Moore and Interim COOÌýPatrick O’Rourke