COVID-19 Campus Guide

Student housing occupancy is not changing at this time. The style and roommate arrangements that students have arranged will remain in place. Students who are on wait lists will be notified if space becomes available. Detailed move-in information was emailed to residential students earlier this month. More information is available here or email housing@salemstate.edu.

This fall, classrooms will be set up so that individuals can be at least three feet apart. All indoor meeting spaces will be arranged to not exceed 75% of typical occupancy. Room reservations have been adjusted accordingly.

Our campus is now open to visitors or guests, as long as they follow safety protocols such as wearing a mask, and we do not exceed the 75% occupancy. The host is responsible for communicating campus protocols and taking attendance including contact information.

There have been no overarching changes to modality of fall semester classes. Classes that were listed as being held in-person, hybrid or remote when students registered will remain that way, barring any extreme circumstances. We are excited to return to our normal class offerings, with 70% of our fall classes offering some in-person component.

Salem State’s Center for Teaching Innovation staff and instructional designers have spent the past year determining best practices for teaching with masks. We are also ensuring we have an ample supply of clear face masks in the event that a student in a given class relies on reading lips. In addition, the university has added class sections to accommodate for allowing more space in classrooms.

Students interested in rearranging their schedules should contact academic advising for assistance. Students have until the end of the add/drop period for full semester courses, which is September 9.

We are looking forward to having more in-person events and opportunities, but we want to make sure that events do not feel crowded and people are able to physically distance, if needed. At this time, students and employees are welcome to plan and attend in-person activities on campus as long as space reservations are made in advance, and we do not exceed the 75% of room occupancy; the room reservation has been updated to reflect this change.

Students should be prepared to show their CoVerified cleared badge in order to participate in activities and attendance may be taken for all participants. Any in-person event that will host more than 200 people will require additional approval as part of the major campus event policy.

In-person activities can include catering. We encourage campus community to work with Sodexo for dining and catering needs on campus. At this time, it is mandated that all event guests be masked. Moreover, masks do not need to be worn while actively eating or drinking.

University cleaning protocols and practices will continue to support a healthy and safe campus environment, following CDC recommendations.

Classrooms and other campus spaces will be cleaned and disinfected daily. Classrooms and office spaces will have access to hand sanitizer, as well as disinfectant and wipes to disinfect shared surfaces between uses. Some spaces, like shared restrooms in the residence halls, will be cleaned several times a day.

Salem State has also reviewed ventilation across campus and over the course of the last year, we have made improvement to several campus buildings.