Dear Comets:
UT Dallas plans to return to in-person classes and events for the fall semester. Our safe return to campus will depend largely on the actions of our faculty, our staff and, most critically, our students. We all must take steps to protect ourselves and our campus community.
Under Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order (GA-38), we cannot require members of our campus community to be vaccinated or wear face coverings on campus. However, we know that these two measures are the best ways to protect ourselves and others from contracting or spreading COVID-19.
- We strongly encourage all members of our community to get a COVID-19 vaccine and to register their vaccination status through our voluntary vaccine reporting form. We will offer opportunities for people to receive a COVID-19 vaccine on campus.
- We strongly encourage all members of our community to wear a mask while indoors, regardless of vaccination status. This is in accord with current guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
In addition, we will be implementing the following measures to help keep our campus community safe and healthy during the fall semester:
- Classroom De-densification: For the first three weeks of the fall semester, in-person courses will be taught at a lower density. This will be implemented at the discretion of the instructor of record as published in CourseBook. This applies to traditional lecture and laboratory courses, as well as to the in-person portions of hybrid or blended courses. Students will have at least one in-person experience per week in each course during this time. As an example, in-person courses may be taught in the HyFlex modality with students attending class in person one day per week and synchronously online for the other class sessions. Students will be informed by their instructors if their classes will be HyFlex or adjusted for density in another way and, if so, when they should attend in person. More details on the fall semester academic plan will be forthcoming.
- Daily Health Check Program: Starting Wednesday, Aug. 18, all faculty members, staff and students will be enrolled in and will be required to complete the Daily Health Check, regardless of vaccination status. Those who previously opted out of the program will be re-enrolled. Visit the Comets United site for additional Daily Health Check information.
- COVID-19 Testing: All faculty members, staff and students are required to participate in the University’s COVID-19 testing program. Every member of the University community will receive a test within the first three weeks of the semester. Thereafter, the University will test a sample of the UT Dallas community as part of its proactive testing program. The tests are free of charge. Information on scheduling tests and on details of the proactive testing program will be forthcoming.
- Self-Reporting: Faculty members, staff and students who test positive for COVID-19, have COVID-19 symptoms, or who have had close contact with someone who has a confirmed or likely case of COVID-19 are required to complete a COVID-19 self-reporting form and cooperate with University contact tracers.
- Quarantine/Isolation: Faculty members, staff and students who test positive or have been identified as a close contact of someone who tested positive are required to quarantine/isolate consistent with CDC guidance.
The health and safety of the UT Dallas community is our top priority. We are monitoring the public health environment of the North Texas region, and we will not hesitate to change our plans and response, as necessary, based on guidance from federal, state and local public health authorities. Please monitor your email and the Comets United webpage for updates and the latest University plans.
We look forward to seeing you back on campus in the coming weeks. Thank you for keeping our campus healthy and safe, and for being Comets United.
Sincerely,
Dr. Richard C. Benson
President
Eugene McDermott Distinguished University Chair of Leadership