September 24, 2020
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To: All Students Dear Students, We’re off to a great start in advance of the new academic year. Thanks to all of you for the seriousness and respect you have been showing in upholding the UChicago Health Pact. My greatest hope, and expectation, is that each of you will continue following the policies and practices necessary to keep our community safe and healthy. However, the concern and question I hear most frequently from students and others is, “what happens for those who don’t follow the guidelines and put themselves and our community at risk?” I write today with an update to my September 4 message on expectations for Autumn Quarter, particularly on consequences for not complying with COVID-19 health and safety policies. All currently enrolled students have agreed to follow the guidelines listed in the Attestation and UChicago Health Pact. In addition to the University Policies and Regulations: Student Manual, which describes the University’s Disciplinary Systems for misconduct, the University will make use of interim measures that will allow us to move quickly to address matters of student noncompliance in an effort to reduce spread of COVID-19. Violation Procedures The University takes non-compliance with the Attestation and the Health Pact extremely seriously and will apply established escalation procedures to address infractions. Depending on the specific facts and circumstances of the situation, infractions may result in a written warning, removal from housing, loss of access to on-campus dining and other facilities (including libraries and the Ratner Athletics Center), probation, suspension, a total ban from campus for one or more quarters, and finally, expulsion. These procedures apply to those living on- or off-campus. The most serious cases of non-compliance may implicate and trigger the disciplinary processes under the University Statute 21. Statute 21 prohibits conduct by members of our community that substantially obstructs, impairs, or interferes with teaching, study, research, and administration of the University, or the rights and privileges of other members of the community. More information about all of these measures can be found on the UChicago Forward site. Reporting Violations As a reminder, if you have a COVID-19-related public health concern at any time, please share it with your area dean of students or UCAIR, the University’s incident reporting system. UCAIR is the main reporting method if you believe that a required COVID-19 safety policy or practice is not being followed. UCAIR reports can be submitted anonymously; however, we ask that you provide as much detail as possible. Reports will be reviewed with follow-up by the appropriate campus administrator, including the area deans of students. If you have asked a person to stop violating requirements and they continue or become confrontational, please do not pursue the issue further in person. Instead, please remove yourself from the situation, particularly if you feel unsafe. Depending on the urgency of the situation, you can report it immediately to your dean of students, or via UCAIR. It is incumbent upon all of us to conduct ourselves in ways that promote a healthy, safe, and successful Autumn Quarter. Having spoken with many of you over the past few months, I am confident in the determination of our students, faculty, and staff to make this happen. |