This University masking policy change reflects several indicators reviewed by the COVID-19 Response Team every week. We’ve seen both the positivity rates and the number of positive cases decline on campus and for Buchanan county. Additionally, we’ve seen the same decreasing trend in the local hospitalization rates.��

Masks are recommended for those who are unvaccinated and/or have underlying health concerns. Learn more about CDC mask recommendations .

The University continues to encourage COVID-19 vaccination and will host another with Heart to Heart International on Thursday, February 24.

COVID-19 Testing

Testing remains a very important tool in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.��

• Every home in the U.S. is eligible to order 4 free at-home COVID-19 tests. Visit to order your tests.
• Visit our COVID-19 webpage for local testing opportunities.��

Stay home if you are ill

• If you develop symptoms, get a test and stay home.��
• Faculty and staff should use sick leave or vacation hours. If you do not have sufficient leave to support your paid absence from work, you may be eligible to.��
• Students should submit a Disrupted Student Assistance Notification form.��

We wanted to communicate this decision as quickly as possible, and we appreciate your patience as we are in the process of updating our webpage and signs around campus to reflect this change.

The COVID-19 Response Team will continue to meet weekly to review data and adjust mitigation strategies, including the campus face covering policy, as warranted. The team reviews campus and community vaccination rates, positivity rates, and local hospitalization rates, among other data points, and is continually guided by the best available science-based evidence and expert recommendations in order to make informed decisions about campus activities.��

Additional information can be found under our campus COVID-19 guidelines.

Thank you for all you’re doing to help make our campus a safe place to be!��

Best,
Elizabeth
Dr. Elizabeth Kennedy, President
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Greetings,

As you probably saw in the news, regarding face coverings and physical distancing for those who have been fully vaccinated. In accordance with these changes, we are updating our face covering policy and our physical distancing policy.

Briefly, effective immediately:

• if you are fully vaccinated, you are not required to wear a face covering or observe physical distancing

• if you have not been fully vaccinated, face coverings are still required in all indoor spaces and physical distancing is required whenever possible.

For purposes of these policies, we are following the CDC’s definition that a person is “fully vaccinated” two weeks after their second dose in a two-dose series, such as the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines, or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine, such as Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen vaccine. Please click the links above to review the policies in full.

We will continue to monitor conditions on campus and in the community as well as guidance from federal, state and local health officials and will adjust our policies as necessary.

This new guidance underscores the importance of getting your vaccine. We all desire a return to normal, and the quickest way for us to get there is for as many of us as possible to be vaccinated. We strongly encourage vaccination as soon as possible to ensure the health and safety of our campus community. The vaccines are widely available through the CDC’s or the State of Missouri’s . To make it even easier for our Griffon family, we are exploring the possibility of hosting vaccination clinics on campus – stay tuned for more information.

As always, I want to thank you for the gracious and resilient way that you have met the challenges of this pandemic. I am exceptionally proud of how we have come together to keep our campus community safe and healthy.

Best,

Elizabeth

While these are encouraging signs, we are concerned about the vaccination rates: Missouri has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country, and Buchanan County’s rate is below Missouri’s. As a reminder, today is the day all Missourians over the age of 16 became eligible for the vaccine. If you haven’t already scheduled your appointment to be vaccinated, we encourage you to do so.��

After weighing this data, and considering recommendations of the CDC and other health officials, we are making the following adjustments to our safety protocols for the rest of the spring semester.

• Events

  • All campus departments and groups wanting to hold an event must use the .

  • All events, whether indoors or outdoors, must be scheduled in a reservable space.

  • Indoor events: we will continue to enforce COVID capacities in indoor spaces. The only food allowed at indoor events will be prepackaged, grab-and-go snacks.

  • Outdoor events: Food (snacks and meals) are permitted.

• Campus visitors

  • Campus groups can bring in visitors, and external groups can reserve Missouri Western spaces, as long as COVID protocols are followed.

  • Students living in the residence halls will continue to be prohibited from having day or overnight visitors from outside the campus community in their rooms.

• Travel

  • Student groups are now allowed to travel to off-campus meetings or events as long as COVID protocols are followed.

All other protocols, including our face covering and physical distancing requirements, will remain in place through at least the end of the spring semester. We will continue to evaluate data and guidance from health organizations as we make plans for the summer and fall.

Individuals must fall within the state’s current vaccination priority phases. Visit. On April 9th, all remaining Missourians become eligible for vaccine. Please note that these locations are not guaranteed to have vaccines available at all times. Please visit their websites or call for more details.

The Community Clinic��

East Hills Shopping Center (Gordman’s former location), 3702 Frederick Avenue, St. Joseph, , 816.271.4613

Pharmacy Locations

CVS, 3320 N Belt Hwy, St Joseph, ��

Hy -Vee, 201 N Belt Hwy, St Joseph,

Rogers, 3705 N. Belt Hwy, St Joseph, (816) 232-3348 —Choose option 10 to register��

Sam’s Club, 5201 N Belt Hwy Ste A, St Joseph, ��

Walgreens, 4022 N Belt Hwy, St Joseph; 3645 Frederick Ave, St Joseph; 2620 S. Belt Hwy, St Joseph, ��

Walmart, 4201 N Belt Hwy, St Joseph; 3022 S Belt Hwy, St Joseph, ����

Northwest Missouri (Region H) Mass Vax Events��

Sponsored by State of Missouri, local health officials and Missouri National Guard,

Senior & Disabled Vaccine Registration Assistance

Seniors and those who are disabled in NWMO can seek assistance with vaccination registration, coordinating round trip transportation for vaccination appointments, and setting up reminder calls! Contact Young at Heart Resources 1-888 -844 -5626,

Campus community,

I want to thank all students, faculty and staff for your ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of the Missouri Western community. Because of your concern for others, we have thus far avoided any major outbreaks of COVID-19 and have been able to continue offering in-person classes and campus operations throughout the school year. You and your efforts have made a difference. Well done!

While the City of St. Joseph’s emergency mask order will end at midnight tonight (March 23), Missouri Western will continue to require that face coverings be worn over the mouth and nose in all indoor public spaces, including classrooms and hallways, and in outdoor spaces where physical distancing cannot be maintained. In reaching this determination, the University’s COVID Response Team considered various factors, and recommended to me that for the safety of all involved, Missouri Western continue to exercise its existing guidelines. On behalf of the COVID Response Team, I’d like to explain why our COVID-19 safety protocols, including the mask requirement, will remain in place.

��I’ve said several times over the past few weeks that there are reasons for hope, including the recent drop in the number of cases on campus and in the community, the low number of local hospitalizations and the growing availability of vaccines. Despite these grounds for optimism, there are also many reasons to remain cautious. While some members of our Griffon family have been vaccinated, many are not yet eligible. Only 12 percent of Missouri residents have been vaccinated, one of the lowest rates in the nation. Additionally, variants of the COVID-19 virus have developed, leading to surges in other parts of the country and around the globe.

��Because of the need for continued caution, Missouri Western will continue to maintain its current COVID-19 safety protocols. That means monitoring yourself for symptoms and staying home when sick, wearing face coverings over your mouth and nose, keeping at least six feet of distance between you and others whenever possible, and washing your hands and sanitizing commonly touched surfaces frequently. Based on our assessment of current conditions, these measures will help us successfully complete the semester and are vital to our continued ability to offer an on-campus experience.��

��Our COVID Response Team will continue to monitor several factors in recommending changes to campus protocols, including the number of cases on campus, in St. Joseph and in the surrounding region; the availability and distribution of vaccines in the community; and the effect of new variants on the spread of the disease.

As a reminder, BinaxNOW COVID-19 rapid result tests are available at no charge for Missouri Western students and employees who are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms. The tests are available through the Esry Health Center on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons by appointment only. In addition, the State of Missouri has launched its , which allows residents to sign up to be notified when they are eligible to be vaccinated. If you have not already done so, I strongly encourage you to visit this site. Additional information about the University COVID-19 Response, including the State of Missouri Vaccination Plan is available at /covid-19/.

With your help, I’m certain that together, we can mitigate the spread of the virus and keep our campus safe and healthy.

Best,

Elizabeth

In order to plan your vaccination, you can register through the , Mosaic Life Care’s , your local health department, or your family’s healthcare provider or pharmacy. In addition, the Kansas City VA Medical Center is conducting vaccination clinics providing 1200 doses per week. If you are a veteran, you can call to register at: 816-922-2619.

In the meantime, thank you for continuing to practice healthy habits to fight the spread. Your efforts are definitely making a difference!

Crystal

As of January 18, 2021, the State of Missouri authorized COVID-19 vaccinations for Phase 1B – Tiers 1 and 2. Those tiers include members of the public who meet the following eligibility:��

• 65 years of age or older

• Adults (18 years of age or older) with one or more of the following high-risk conditions –cancer, chronic kidney disease, COPD, heart conditions, weakened immune system due to organ transplant, severe obesity (BMI greater than 40), pregnancy, sickle cell disease, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, or individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities such as down syndrome

UPDATE, March 19, 2021: The State of Missouri announced that Phase 2 of the COVID-19 vaccination plan would be activated on March 29. Phase 2 includes higher education, so all Missouri Western employees will be eligible then. Phase 3 of the vaccination plan will be activated April 9. Phase 3 includes all Missouri adults.

Please note:

• There is a limited vaccine supply from the State of Missouri.

• Mosaic, along with their respective partner, is ordering vaccine on a weekly basis and amounts that are received are determined by the state.

• This is a fluid process. Things will change as vaccine shipments arrive and numbers go up or down.

• Please be patient. We sincerely want to vaccinate our community and beat this virus once and for all.

• There may be delays on the website due to heavy traffic. Again, be patient and know residents might have to try later as the website allows for a high volume of visits.

• Please do not call the medical center for an appointment. Mosaic is unable to make an appointment over the phone for the COVID-19 vaccine.

• Do not call the nurse line for an appointment, as that line is reserved for patients with health issues and concerns.

If you live outside of the immediate St. Joseph area, visit the state website or contact your local health department or healthcare provider for information on how you can obtain the vaccine:

• (DeKalb, Gentry, Worth Counties)

Specific considerations will include:

• Incidence: The number of new cases on campus will be compared to St. Joseph, Buchanan County, & the state using data from the . The Pathway to Zero will be used as a reference.
• Campus Isolation Bed Capacity: People who test positive require private rooms with a separate bathroom facility. We will monitor the availability of beds for isolation (n=12) on campus.
• Hospital Capacity: The provides a dashboard of key indicators for the region that may be impacted by the COVID-19. We will look at hospital bed availability, ventilator availability, and personal protective equipment availability (face shields, gloves, masks, and gowns). Mosaic Life Care capacity will also be considered as information is made available.
• Clusters:�� A cluster will be defined as 3 or more individuals who test positive for COVID-19 traced from a single event at a specific period of time.�� Identification of clusters may help us identify the effectiveness of our prevention strategies and groups or activities where further action to reduce the spread of COVID-19 may be required.
• Employees:�� The number of employees who are unable to perform their duties due to either illness or quarantine will be considered to determine if mission critical functions may continue.
• Campus contact tracing: The ability to provide timely contact tracing by the local public health department and/or the university. Contact tracing is identifying any individuals who have had close contact with someone with COVID-19 in order to educate them about quarantine in order to reduce the spread of the disease.
• Super spreader event: The number of cases transmitted at a single event is disproportionately higher than normal rates.����
• Local or state recommendations: Stay at home or quarantine orders that may come from city or state government officials.��

These specific considerations or indicators will provide a basis for measured response on our campus with the goal of safety for our students, employees, and the community.��