Message from President Inch, Nov. 11 2021

Greetings to our students and employees,

I am writing to share a COVID-19 update and our university efforts to ensure the health and well-being of our campus community.

As we approach late fall, and dropping temperatures have begun to bring more gatherings indoors, the state and our surrounding counties have experienced increases in active COVID-19 cases. Similarly, we have seen an upward trend in this week’s active cases among members of our own campus community.

We continue to monitor the pandemic and work with local and state officials, as well as the Minnesota State system office to determine any additional changes if they become necessary. We also continue our practice of analyzing the data and gathering additional information to identify the risk of exposure, potential clusters of cases, and to reduce the likelihood of on-campus transmission.

To keep our campus healthy, we will continue to enforce existing protocols, including face coverings in all indoor spaces. We plan to continue the mask requirement until our county drops to the CDC’s “Moderate” or “Low” transmissions for 14 consecutive days. We will continue to require proof of vaccine or weekly testing of all employees and students living in residence halls or participating in select campus activities.

In addition, we are immediately taking the following steps:

We are expanding our weekly testing options to include exposure testing for all students and employees. This free service is available every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 1-4 p.m. in Carkoski Commons through the remainder of the fall semester. The required surveillance testing for employees and student employees will continue to be offered on Tuesdays. You should visit a medical facility if you are seeking symptomatic testing.
We are extending our partnership with Blue Earth County to continue providing campus Vaccination Clinics. You can register for a vaccination at https://mankato.mnsu.edu/coronavirus/safety-measures/vaccinations/
New exterior door signage was placed this week as a reminder of the masking expectation on our campus.
Students, faculty, and staff who have been fully vaccinated for more than six months are now eligible to receive a booster. I urge everyone to get vaccinated.

There is no change in the delivery of our classes or employee workplace expectations. Despite the recent increase in active cases, I continue to be impressed by the many ways our community has stepped up to meet the unique challenge the pandemic has provided. I’m proud to report that as of this message, 92% of our employees and 65% of our students are fully vaccinated—and these numbers continue to rise.

Thank you, Mavericks, for doing your part to protect the herd.

Edward S. Inch, Ph.D.

President