As of Thursday, December 22, HUHS has retired the use of the Contact Tracing Team and Crimson Clear application. This means that students are no longer required to report a positive COVID-19 case to HUHS. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 should manage their isolation and discharge independently by referring to the HUHS website, which reflects and provide links to current CDC guidance. Medical and symptom questions should be directed to the individual’s primary care physician clinician as needed.

Students who test positive should continue to follow the local guidance about whom to contact for academic or residential accommodations, but they do not need to notify HUHS unless that infection affects the 90-day timing of a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination.

 

As of Thursday, December 22, HUHS has retired the use of the Contact Tracing Team and Crimson Clear application. This means that faculty are no longer required to report a positive COVID-19 case to HUHS. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 should manage their isolation and discharge independently by referring to the HUHS website, which reflects and provide links to current CDC guidance. Medical and symptom questions should be directed to the individual’s primary care physician clinician as needed.

Faculty and staff who test positive should notify their manager of their positive case and their anticipated return-to-work date. Employees and their managers should work together following standard HR policies.

 

We advise parents of children who are sick to:

• Talk to their pediatrician about their children's symptoms.
• If the child tests positive, the instructor should follow these guidelines from HUHS regarding COVID-19 exposure.
• If the child is in CDC-recommended isolation for COVID-19, the instructor may teach remotely for the duration of that isolation.

 

Harvard no longer requires routine testing for COVID-19, however all affiliates with an on-campus presence are encouraged to test before/after travel and when there is increased risk or suspicion about COVID-19 infection. Anyone with symptoms or known exposure should test and follow Harvard University Health Services (HUHS) guidance.

Rapid Antigen Tests are readily available, can be done at home, and provide results in minutes. HUHS encourages all Harvard community members to be prepared by obtaining antigen test kits and having them accessible in the event that you might need to test. Tests can be ordered for free at COVIDtests.gov, and are also offered by many local health departments. Individuals may also buy tests online or in pharmacies and retail stores, which may be eligible for reimbursement by private health insurance providers. Harvard affiliates covered by Express Scripts can order 8 free antigen tests per month.

As of Thursday, December 22, students and employees are no longer required to report a positive COVID-19 case to HUHS. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 should manage their isolation and discharge independently by referring to the HUHS website, which reflects and provide links to current CDC guidance. Medical and symptom questions should be directed to the individual’s primary care physician clinician as needed.

 

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Suffolk and Middlesex counties have a medium COVID-19 community level. COVID-19 is still circulating among us—but the risk it poses for the health of our community can be managed. Given the current level of community risk, high levels of vaccination in the Harvard community and Massachusetts as a whole, wide availability of COVID therapeutics, upcoming covid vaccine boosters, the cost to our educational mission of mandating masking outweighs the marginal benefit to our community.

While optional in all settings—except for healthcare—we encourage carrying a mask at all times and recommend voluntary masking in crowded settings, especially indoors. The availability of N95 and KN95 masks allows those at the highest risk—and their loved ones—to effectively protect themselves.

To reduce risk, wear a high-quality, well-fitted mask in crowded indoor settings, including on planes and public transit. Be prepared; always carry a mask. If you feel the need to wear a mask for your own protection, or to protect someone close to you, you should do so. Nobody should be made to feel uncomfortable, unwelcome, or marginalized because they choose to wear or not wear a mask in a mask-optional setting. Remember that some members of our community, or their family members and other loved ones, are vulnerable to complications from COVID-19 and should continue to wear a mask. Anyone with symptoms or known exposure should continue to test and follow Harvard University guidelines for COVID-19 exposure.

Faculty with a disability or other physical or mental health condition that they think will impact their ability to be present on campus should contact their Faculty Affairs representative or University Disability Resources (disabilityresources@harvard.edu) as soon as possible to request an accommodation or an exemption to the requirement to be present on campus. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Students must inform their instructors of their situation and take some responsibility themselves for staying on top of their work, as best they can. Academic continuity remains an important principle in such cases but given the shorter COVID-19 isolation period now in effect, any measures taken by instructors to help students out can probably be relatively simple and follow the normal processes in effect prior to the pandemic. 

Education Support Services (ESS) does not recommend using Zoom as means to include an absent student in class sessions; many Harvard classrooms do not have the requisite installed AV equipment to support the equitable, effective inclusion of students in a class session or discussion.  Rather, instructors could: 

• Encourage students to identify a “study buddy” with whom to exchange notes and information at the beginning of the semester. 
• Use their discretion to provide alternative assignments or other ways for a student to stay caught up in class if they need to isolate. 
• Have a TF or fellow student they have identified use a smartphone to make a simple recording that can be uploaded to Canvas, along with any slides or presentations from class. ESS has compiled guidance and instructions for self-service lecture capture by TFs or students assigned to this task, which are available at https://ess.fas.harvard.edu/ad-hoc-lecture-capture-best-practices.   
• Information for faculty who are recording their class sessions themselves can be found at https://ess.fas.harvard.edu/instructional-continuity-diy-class-session-recording. 
• If the class takes place in a room already equipped with lecture capture technology,  ESS can assist you to record the class and make the recording available on Canvas.  ESS policies and a list of classrooms with lecture capture installed can be found at https://ess.fas.harvard.edu/lecture-capture-and-class-recording.   Contact us at ess@fas.harvard.edu for more information.  Please note that ESS has limited capacity to support staffed lecture capture. 

Classrooms with installed lecture capture equipment include: 

Harvard Hall 101, Harvard Hall 105, Harvard Hall 201, Harvard Hall 104, Emerson 105, Emerson 210, Biolabs-1080, Northwest B-101, Northwest B-103, Northwest-B108, Pfizer Auditorium, and Sever 113. 

If you choose to record your class, please be mindful of Harvard’s privacy policy on recording lectures.  

No, to reduce pressure on staff resources, HUHS has lifted this previous requirement. Faculty should instead ask students to email them, including (if desired) a snapshot of the results of their Crimson Clear survey, and to copy their Resident Dean (in their House or Yard). If concerns exist about the excused absence, the Resident Dean will be in a position to raise them directly with the student.

NOTE: Per the Harvard College Student Handbook, if a student misses a final exam for medical reasons of any sort, COVID-related or otherwise, the student is still required to show a doctor’s note.

All students who have completed a five-day isolation period must wear a well-fitting mask in all public spaces, including classrooms, for an additional five days. Students who are healthy are no longer required by the University to wear masks in the classroom.

Face coverings are optional in all indoor and outdoor spaces on Harvard’s campus. If a student or instructor feels the need to continue wearing a mask for their own protection, or the protection of someone close to them, they should do so. Wearing a high-quality mask that fits securely over the face without air gaps is an effective way to reduce personal risk.

Students affiliated with the Houses can obtain high quality masks from their Building Managers. For Dudley and first-year students, they are available at Yard Operations.

Faculty and instructors can obtain KN-95 masks through your FAS School or department. Please contact your department administrator for additional information.

The University is closely monitoring local conditions in Cambridge and the greater Boston area and will revisit masking guidelines as appropriate.

No. With few exceptions, face coverings are optional in all indoor and outdoor spaces on Harvard’s campus. If a student or instructor feels the need to continue wearing a mask for their own protection, or the protection of someone close to them, they should do so. Wearing a high-quality mask that fits securely over the face without air gaps is an effective way to reduce personal risk. Masking is a personal decision, and we ask that you not request or direct students to mask or unmask. However, if a student is not masking in your class within the 5 days following isolation for COVID, as currently required, please contact the student’s Resident Dean.

While optional in all settings—except for healthcare—Harvard encourages carrying a mask at all times and recommends voluntary masking in crowded settings, especially indoors. The availability of N95 and KN95 masks allows those at the highest risk—and their loved ones—to effectively protect themselves.

Faculty with a disability or other physical or mental condition that they think will impact their ability to be present on campus, should contact their Faculty Affairs representative or University Disability Resources (disabilityresources@harvard.edu) as soon as possible to request an accommodation or an exemption to the requirement to be present on campus. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

If you were approved for an accommodation last year, and you are seeking another accommodation this year, you need to reapply.

TFs with a disability or other physical or mental condition that they think will impact their ability to be present on campus, should contact University Disability Resources (disabilityresources@harvard.edu) as soon as possible to request an accommodation or an exemption to the requirement to be present on campus. Such requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

If they were approved for an accommodation last year, and they are seeking another accommodation this year, they need to reapply.

The current phase of the pandemic is significantly different compared to its early phase and requests for remote participation in work or classes will be assessed on this different basis, compared to how such requests were assessed during the acute phase of the pandemic.

Most teaching can now be effectively accomplished without any need to move to a remote platform. Exceptions, to the degree they are granted, would be on a very limited basis. If you want to discuss an extraordinary situation that you think warrants an exception, please contact the Office of Undergraduate Education at oue@fas.harvard.edu.

No, TFs and TAs are expected to teach in-person, no less than faculty. If a TF or a TA has a disability-related reason for seeking a teaching accommodation, they should contact University Disability Resources.

NOTE: If a TF or TA had a disability accommodation in the past, they will need to reapply for accommodation for the Fall 2022.

Yes. Students and others wishing to audit courses may do so, but only with the permission of the instructor. Courses which exclude auditors are noted as such on the Course Descriptions.

Yes. Please consult the OUE guidance on field trips for more information.

Yes, you may have either in-person or remote visitors to your classes. Please see the guidance developed by the OUE, the Bok Center, and the ESS team for some options for hosting visitors.

Yes, so long as there are no other restrictions on eating in the classrooms where you are teaching.

Yes. Faculty have always had flexibility with the ways that they maintained an advising relationship with their students. Many met with students in person, but others connected by phone, or responded to questions via email. We welcome the use of online platforms like Zoom as an additional tool for connecting with and supporting individual students.

If you are teaching a course in a classroom at another Harvard School, please follow the public health policies and practices of the School where the classroom is located. School and program information is available online.

No. For Fall 2022, rapid antigen testing was required upon arrival on campus for all residential students and highly encouraged for arriving students who live off-campus. Additionally, Harvard recommended that students complete a pre-arrival antigen test before travel. Anyone with symptoms or known exposure should continue to test and follow Harvard University guidelines for COVID-19 exposure. Students should use Crimson Clear to report if they have symptoms, have been exposed to someone with COVID-19, or have tested positive outside of the University’s testing program or HUHS. For all members of the Harvard community, HUHS recommends that you stay home if you feel unwell.

Yes, all libraries, archives, museums and other collections are back to normal hours and operations. Please check the relevant websites for information about procedures for accessing materials you might need.

Students, faculty, staff and researchers who are traveling internationally must register their Harvard-related international travel with International SOS, the University’s emergency response provider. More travel guidance is available online.

No, all previous restrictions on social gatherings have been lifted, and physical distancing is no longer required indoors or outdoors. Should public health conditions change, the University will adjust as well, and this document will be updated. For more information on current policies, click here.