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Tritons are committed to safety

Summer courses at UMSL remain largely in a fully online mode. However, as vaccines are now readily available for those ages 12 and up, the university with return in the fall to a mix of in person, online and blended courses. Faculty and staff are already beginning to return to campus to welcome our students back - and will provide opportunities for both in person and remote academic supports. University officials will continue to monitor the pandemic situation closely and be ready to make any adjustments, including moving to remote or other models for delivering instruction, should that become necessary.

Upon returning, all UMSL students are expected to take proactive health and safety steps such as monitoring their personal health and staying home if they are feeling unwell to protect the safety of our entire community.

Help us continue to be safe

Below are the baseline behaviors we will need from our entire university community to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Monitor Your Daily Health

Students and employees will be expected to self-monitor their health on a daily basis for symptoms including temperature, cough, loss of smell or taste, difficulty breathing, fatigue and more.

A free mobile app, Campus Screen, is available that will direct users through a daily health check to support self-monitoring efforts. Students, employees or visitors may be asked to show their daily campus pass status to enter buildings, classrooms or other university activities.
- Download for Android
- Download for iOS

If you are experiencing symptoms that are atypical of your individual health circumstances, have tested positive for COVID-19, or have had contact with a person identified as testing positive:

Stay home and do not come to campus or leave your residence hall. If symptoms are experienced during the day while on campus, leave immediately and return to your residence.
Only if you are experiencing symptoms, have tested positive or had had contact with others identified as having tested positive, you are required to submit a Reporting COVID-19 Diagnosis/Symptoms form.
This form will be directed to the Campus Health Officer - charged with tracking suspected or confirmed cases on campus - who will follow up with each individual to discuss symptoms, diagnosis and next steps.
The Campus Health Officer will notify instructors if a student absence is required for any medical reason – including those related to a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19. Though students may send a notice to instructors in order to make them aware, but note that you are not required to disclose the medical reason for your absence.
If a student is instructed to not come to campus due to COVID-19 policies, they must not return to campus until written/email approval is provided by the Campus Health Officer.

Face Coverings Policy

Effective July 26, 2021, all faculty, staff, students and visitors age five and older are required to wear a face mask when entering or occupying a physical building or facility owned, operated or managed by the university regardless of vaccination status. Additionally, face coverings are required when utilizing campus shuttles. Wearing face masks outdoors, especially in group settings, continues to be strongly encouraged.

While wearing a face mask is an additional step to help slow the spread of COVID-19 Delta Variant, getting vaccinated is the safest and quickest way to protect your own health and that of your family, friends and our community.

If you have not yet done so, please join a vaccination event or schedule your appointment today. Doing so will help ensure not only the safety of yourself and others, but also the ability of our university community to begin a near-normal fall semester with fewer safety restrictions.

Read the full policy and FAQs

Practice Hygiene Etiquette

Avoid close contact with anyone who is sick or experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19.
Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth then wash or disinfect hands.
Cover cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash and wash or disinfect hands.
Frequently wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating and after blowing the nose, coughing or sneezing.
If soap and water are not readily available, use an ethyl alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60%-95% alcohol. UMSL has placed hundreds of sanitizer stations throughout campus.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.

Mental health resources

Mental health is an important aspect of overall health and well-being. It may be difficult to avoid mental health challenges right now, but there are things we can do to improve our ability to cope with difficult situations and mental health concerns.

Visit our resources section to find ways to maintain good mental health and to improve your emotional well-being.

Student FAQs

Coursework Changes

Although in person courses will continue in the fall, UMSL has increased 100% online course offerings as well as blended courses to meet our student's needs. These blended courses incorporate the strengths of both face-to-face and online learning to create a unique and quality experience.

Course format options

FULLY IN PERSON

In-person classes allow you to interact face-to-face with your peers and professors, and to collaborate with them, with all learning taking place at the same location on a set schedule. .

Fully Online

Fully online and partially online courses are offered in both synchronous or asynchronous formats.

Synchronous courses are those that meet virtually at a specific day and time. If a course is synchronous, the day and time will be listed on the schedule with a meeting location of “online” listed next to it. The notes section of the schedule will also give more information about the time requirements for these courses.
Asynchronous courses are those where the course is completed within a specific timeframe on the student’s schedule.

Blended

Blended learning is a cohesive mix of synchronous face-to-face learning experiences coupled with online learning opportunities delivered asynchronously in Canvas. This infusion of online learning into an in-person course is called Blended Learning. Faculty have designed their courses with best practices to combine a clearly communicated pattern of face-to-face class meetings with online learning experiences for a blended delivery.

For those unfamiliar with blended learning, these courses incorporate the strengths of both face-to-face and online learning to create a unique and quality experience that makes best use of each environment.

Blended courses can be offered in a variety of meeting patterns: once weekly, bi-weekly, monthly or even specific dates during the semester. That information can be found on the class schedule and on the course itself in MyView. Students will be notified when the change has been made to their schedule to log into MyView and review the updated schedule.

Classroom Changes

What will classrooms look like?

Classrooms will no longer be arranged for social distancing and will return to a traditional arrangement with students selecting seating based on their preference. There are currently no restrictions related to social distancing.

What is the cleaning schedule for classrooms?

Our custodial services staff will frequently clean all classrooms as well as provide disinfectant spray and paper towels in each room for any additional needs. Facilities will also provide packages of disinfectant wipes to each faculty member teaching in person this semester to take to class to wipe down keyboards at the instructor station as well as provide them for student use in the case of classrooms with student computer stations or laptops.

Have ventilation concerns been taken into consideration in our buildings and classrooms?

Yes, in buildings that have central ventilation systems the settings have been adapted to bring in fresh air rather than circulate air within the building. In buildings where the ventilation system are de-centralized it may be necessary to have windows open in classrooms and other areas to provide the fresh air return. These rooms will be marked with signage.

Residential Life and Housing

The Office of Residential Life and Housing at the University of Missouri–St. Louis is committed to providing on-campus housing and maintaining a learning environment that encourages academic success, student engagement, personal growth and personal responsibility.

Both Oak Hall and Mansion Hill will be open and we are focused on maintaining a safe, secure and clean living environments.

COVID-19 Packing List

Face coverings
Hand sanitizer, alcohol-based with at least 60% alcohol
Cleaning supplies (ie, sanitizing wipes)
Acetaminophen (Tylenol) or Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin)
Thermometer
If applicable and possible, an extra month supply of any prescription medication
Any resources needed to complete coursework remotely

Enhanced Cleaning

Emphasis is being placed on cleaning common areas in residential facilities.

Private suite-style bathrooms will not be cleaned by the university to prevent unnecessary entry into rooms.
Residents need to take standards for hygiene and cleanliness very seriously and take steps to ensure the safety of roommates/apartment-mates, adhering to CDC cleaning guidelines.

General Guidelines

When possible, occupancy per suite will be assigned to limit the total number of residents in a given suite.
Unnecessary room moves will be discouraged.
Door access procedures may change to remove the requirement to swipe in with university ID during certain hours. Instead, residents and staff may show ID upon entry.
Dining will provide pre-packaged, grab-and-go meal options for carryout. Locations will utilize social distancing and line queues. Face coverings will be required in all public areas of our facilities including in all dining locations, except when eating.
Beginning in August, students residing in our residential communities will be limited to one designated guest. This temporary requirement will be reviewed by September 15.
Find move-in information at https://www.umsl.edu/services/reslife/MoveInInfo/index.html.

Isolation/Quarantine

Non-vaccinated students exposed or diagnosed with COVID-19 will be instructed to isolate or quarantine in designated locations. Residential Life has identified space which can be used for quarantine/isolation, if necessary. Students who test positive will be encouraged to isolate at home if it is safe and possible to do so.

A student will be released from isolation/quarantine following receipt of ‘release statement’ from Public Health and must coordinate with UMSL Health Services to gain written approval to return to on campus coursework or activities. Upon receipt of the release statement, Residential Life will work with the student on returning to their permanent housing assignment.

Because of the fluid nature of the pandemic, we are continuing to engage in conversations with our campus partners and reviewing and updating best practices and guidelines from the University of Missouri System, public health officials and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) about how to continue to maintain a healthy on-campus environment in preparation for your arrival in fall.

Additional information and guidance is available on the Residential Life and Housing website.

Campus Dining Options

UMSL is committed to have food service options available for the community, but utilizing modifications to allow for safety. The Nosh, Provincial House Dining, Oak Hall C-Store, TJ Library, Einstein’s Bagels and Subway will remain open for grab-and-go or in person orders. Some high-touch amenities such as the Free Style drink machines and salad bars may be taken offline. Vending machines will be available with hand sanitizing stations next to them for hand hygiene.

Our campus food service provider, Sodexo, has implemented an app for those who wish to order and pay online to have contactless pick up from their location of choice.

Download the Bite App

Triton Pantry

Our on campus food pantry will be up and available in a pre-order and pick-up model for all enrolled students.

Learn More

Recreation and Wellness Center

UMSL’s Recreation and Wellness Center is open for patrons with a number of operational changes in the facility to ensure your safety. Please review the latest guidelines on the Rec Center website.

Learn More

Campus Life and Events

The student experience outside of the classroom setting is an integral part of the benefits of college. During this time, our programming will include both in-person and virtual events. We’ll post all of our events and activities on the campus calendar, so be sure to check out calendar.umsl.edu for all of our engagement opportunities.

There will be co-curricular experiences on campus with the size of social gatherings and meetings based upon the guidelines set forth by the university and following public health orders.
Virtual opportunities for engagement will be plentiful. More information about those events can be found at https://myengage.umsl.edu/.
New and returning students will have the opportunity to participate in the Triton Take-Off Welcome Experience via in-person and remote options. Visit umsl.edu/wow for schedule and additional information.

Campus Testing Center

The Campus Testing Center will be open to UMSL students only with modified operations, including:

Students are discouraged from scheduling in-person exams in the Testing Center when a Proctorio (Remotely Proctored) option is available. In-person proctoring is intended for students who do not meet the technical requirements or have disabilities that prevent the use of Proctorio.
The testing center will be set up in a manner that follows current university guidelines.
Students are discouraged from bringing personal items to the Testing Center. Due to possible space expansion, the number of secure lockers for storing personal belongings will be limited.
Testing seats and workstations will be cleaned between each test taker.

Make an appointment: https://www.registerblast.com/umsl/Exam/List

Campus Testing Center

Center for Teaching and Learning

University of Missouri - St. Louis

93 JC Penney Building / Conference Center

5 Arnold B. Grobman Dr

St. Louis, MO 63121-4400

testing@umsl.edu

(314) 516-6396

https://www.umsl.edu/testing

Student-Athlete Information

View student-athlete information in our Face Covering PolicY Page

Campus Shuttles/Navigation

Employees and students are discouraged from taking public transportation when possible. However, we recognize the importance of public transportation as well as campus shuttle services in your ability to access campus.
Those who utilize campus shuttles or public transportation should wear face coverings and avoid touching surfaces unnecessarily while practicing social distancing as much as possible.
Students are discouraged from traveling by car with unvaccinated individuals and are encouraged to wear face coverings if they do.
We also encourage students to navigate to and from their on-campus residential housing as well as from class to class via accessible outside sidewalks and pathways to their destination.

University Libraries

The University Libraries are open - please check the Building & Reference hours shown on their website. You can also use the Chat button or select Research Help for assistance, Zoom session requests, and all other questions. Additional information: Remote Library Services.

Mandatory Vaccinations

As of November 1, 2021, all University of Missouri—St. Louis faculty, staff, volunteers, and students who provide direct services in any campus physical or mental health care site are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect patient health and to minimize the impact of infections on staff. Supervisors will notify individuals who fall under this requirement. Learn more about the Mandatory Vaccination policy.