Dear UMBC Community,

As we start the new semester, we are reminded that the work of inclusion and equity is never complete, either at UMBC or elsewhere across the nation. I am grateful for all of the support that the University community has given the Office of Equity and Inclusion over the past two years as we created a new model of support for community members while at the same time responding to the pandemic, political divisiveness, and more. Given the vital role this office plays in our campus community, I wanted to share some changes. 

Morgan C. Thomas '13 will serve as our Acting Director and Title IX Coordinator. During her time at UMBC, Morgan has demonstrated her passion and commitment to both this community and the work of inclusive excellence. Morgan also served on the Retriever Courage Implementation Team. In addition to these responsibilities, Morgan continues to serve the campus community in contract review and handling of Maryland Public Information Act requests on behalf of the University.

Ever Hanna will serve as our Acting Deputy Title IX Coordinator and continue to lead our training efforts and case management. The work Ever has accomplished since joining our community has strengthened the University's culture of care while addressing inequities on our campus.

Jordan Brooks will continue to serve as a Civil Rights Investigator and to help manage cases in the office. Jordan joined the team in 2021 and is looking forward to in-person connections with our campus community over the next couple of months. Jordan previously worked in student affairs at several colleges and is focused on making our campus a safe and welcoming community for everyone.   

We also have begun the search for an additional Civil Rights Investigator to support the work of the office.

In the coming weeks, we look forward to sharing key next steps for the work of both the Office of Equity and Inclusion and the Inclusion Council. We appreciate your support and partnership, and our attention to the work that the community has entrusted us with remains unwavering.

In partnership,

Candace Dodson-Reed ’96, Chief of Staff to the President and Executive Director, Office of Equity and Inclusion

The Marilyn E. Demorest Faculty Advancement Award is an endowed fund created to support the advancement of all UMBC faculty members in their academic careers; to facilitate their professional development; and to recognize their contributions to faculty advancement and success at UMBC. This fund will be awarded annually to faculty who mentor and/or advise faculty and colleagues in their field.

Nominations (or self-nominations) for the 2021–2022 Marilyn E. Demorest Faculty Advancement Award should include:

• A letter of recommendation (or self-nomination),

• A current curriculum vitae of the nominee, and

• An indication of how the nominee would spend the year as the Marilyn E. Demorest Faculty Advancement Awardee. The letter should make clear the faculty member’s contribution to mentoring and advising faculty.

Nominations are due to Patrice McDermott, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, via email at mcdermot@umbc.edu, no later than February 18, 2022.

The Marilyn E. Demorest Faculty Advancement Award is conferred annually for a term of one year upon a UMBC faculty member. The Marilyn E. Demorest Faculty Advancement Award will be appointed by the Provost, based upon the recommendations of the Honors and Awards Committee of the Faculty Senate.

The award will allocate $3,000 to stipend and $500 to a discretionary expense account to draw upon for a variety of purposes (sponsoring workshops, conferences, travel, mentoring activity). Recipients will update the donor annually to show the impact of the award in advancing faculty at UMBC.

For more information, please contact Patrice McDermott, Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs, at mcdermot@umbc.edu.

KEY POINTS

• Our early testing results show a promising trend.

• Thank you for complying with masking, testing, and other safety protocols.

• If you need help, please reach out.

Dear UMBC Community,

We are writing to express our appreciation of your efforts to comply with current campus health and safety protocols by getting a COVID-19 booster, physical distancing, completing an entry COVID test, and wearing high quality KN95 masks indoors. If you need any more information about any of these requirements please visit our COVID-19 website.

As a result of your commitment to the health and safety of our community, we are seeing promising trends both across the state and at UMBC. Early test results indicate that we are effectively minimizing transmission on campus, and our weekend testing positivity rate was below 1%. Please continue to stay home if you are sick, and if you test positive for COVID-19, review this guidance.

We strongly encourage you to get a booster shot as soon as you are eligible. Many community members took advantage of our on-campus vaccine clinics and we are planning on offering more clinics. We also encourage you to reach out to local pharmacies to schedule your booster shot. Our experts assure us that remaining up to date with your COVID-19 vaccination is the single most important step in preventing severe illness. 

Please know that while our current safety measures are essential we understand that they can be challenging for some. We do not anticipate they will last forever and our teams meet every week to evaluate the current situation and the necessary safety protocols. We hope that if we continue to observe low testing positivity rates on campus, it may be possible to release some of the current restrictions, especially in regards to masking protocols and closures in our campus residential communities. 

Finally, we know that the continued pandemic continues to be challenging, especially for our mental health. Please reach out if you need help. Undergraduate and Graduate students can connect with Retriever Integrated Health and the Academic Success Center for both personal and academic support. Faculty and staff can access our Employee Assistance Program. You can also email covid19@umbc.edu for more information. 

Provost Philip Rous

Vice President of Information Technology and CIO Jack Suess

COVID-19 Planning Coordinating Committee Co-Chairs

Earlier today, UMBC Police received a report of a fire alarm in the Albin O. Kuhn Library and Gallery. UMBC Police and the Baltimore County Fire Department responded immediately and determined that there was not a fire. Unfortunately, there was a significant plumbing issue that has resulted in a temporary closure of the building. The Admissions and Financial Aid offices remain open.  

The library will be closed tomorrow, February 1, 2022. The Retriever Learning Center will be open tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

We are working to reopen the building as quickly as possible. Please check the library website for updates on when the building will reopen.

We appreciate your patience as we respond to this incident.

***These instructions were sent specifically for faculty and staff the week of January 24 - 28. For more general testing instructions, visit covid19.umbc.edu/testing.***

Dear Colleagues,

As additional faculty and staff return to campus over the next two weeks, we wanted to share additional instructions and answers to frequently asked questions about how to complete an on-campus COVID-19 PCR test. All community members are required to test the first day they return to campus, regardless of vaccination status. 

1. We recommend that you take an at-home rapid test the day before you come to campus. 

2. Testing on-campus requires the use of a mobile app. Please review these instructions, download and register now, before you come to campus to test. If you need technical assistance, email mgscanner@umbc.edu.

3. Plan to test as soon as you arrive on campus, before 11am if possible.

4. When you come to campus, plan to pick up a vial and swab at:

• The UMBC police station

• The Center for Well-Being (during operating hours)

• The University Center 3rd floor vestibule

5. Find an isolated or distanced place to complete your swab. This may be your car, your office, or outside. Return your completed test to the drop box at each location. Do NOT test at the pick up and drop off locations as you may expose others.

Frequently asked questions:

Can I be on campus while I am waiting for my results?

Yes. Once you complete your test, you may remain on campus to complete your day wearing an appropriate mask and maintaining physical distance as much as possible. We are relying on masking and distancing protocols to reduce on campus transmission while we await your test results. Given the shortage of testing in Maryland, we felt this was the fairest way to require an entry test.

How long will it take to receive my results?

UMBC cannot check on the status of individual tests. In general, it can take up to three business days to receive your results. Testing results from on-campus tests will be posted to your COVID Compliance Card in your myUMBC profile. 

Is testing on campus safe?

We do believe testing on campus is safe, as long as community members follow instructions, pick up their kits, and swab in a location that is distanced from others. For the first week of classes, we plan to make additional testing, as well as technical assistance, available in the RAC, in order to reduce any potential crowding at testing sites. In addition, it will be helpful to have most employees complete testing next week, before students return. 

What if I recently tested positive?Should I test?

You are not required to test as you may continue to test positive for up to 90 days. You will need to report your result in order to be exempted from entry testing. Information on how to do this and when you can return to campus is available here.

Please email covid19@umbc.edu if you have any questions.

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to update you on UMBC’s plan for implementation of the salary enhancements for University System of Maryland (USM) faculty and staff included in Governor Hogan’s budget for FY 2022 and FY 2023.

Eligible faculty, staff, and graduate assistants will receive FY 2022 enhancements—including a one percent Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA), a 2.5 percent merit increase, and a one-time bonus.

• Bonus: All Regular faculty and staff, Contingent II staff, and graduate assistants who were on payroll as of January 2, 2022, will receive a one-time $1,500 bonus, prorated by full-time equivalency (FTE), in the February 4, 2022 paycheck.

• COLA: All Regular faculty and staff, Contingent II staff, and graduate assistants will receive a one percent COLA retroactive to January 2, 2022, in the February 18, 2022, paycheck.

• Merit: Regular faculty and staff and Contingent II staff are eligible to receive a 2.5 percent increase retroactive to January 2, 2022, in the February 18, 2022, paycheck. 

• Exempt staff, faculty, and Contingent II employees must have been in an eligible position prior to January 15, 2021.

• Exempt and Nonexempt employees must have at least an ‘Effective” on their 2021 performance evaluation. 

• Nonexempt employees must have completed their original probation by June 30, 2021, to be eligible for the merit increase. Regular Nonexempt employees on original probation during that period will receive a 2.5 percent increase upon successful completion of the probation period. 

Additional details can be found in this memo to campus leadership.

The across-the-board merit increase this year recognizes the full community effort that has allowed us to continue our mission of education, research and creative achievement, and public service in spite of the many challenges we have encountered during the pandemic. In recognition of the integral part that adjunct faculty have played in this community effort, we will shortly announce what will be provided to adjunct faculty who are employed to teach on a course by course basis. 

For FY 2023, which begins July 1 2022, USM employees are scheduled to receive an additional three percent COLA and merit increases based on performance from a 2.5 percent merit pool. We will keep the campus updated on UMBC’s plan for implementing FY 2023 salary enhancements.

Thank you for all you do to keep our campus running smoothly.

Provost Philip Rous

Vice President for Administration and Finance Kathy L. Dettloff

In recognition of the continuing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in an effort to mitigate some of its impacts, the Promotion and Tenure (P&T) protocol modifications that are currently in place for the AY 2021-2022 P&T cycle will be extended to tenure-track and librarian faculty who are scheduled for P&T review during the next academic year (AY 2022-2023).

Additionally, we are further adjusting the temporary modifications to the P&T policy announced in 2021 to permit all Assistant Professors who have successfully completed their third-year contract review to request a second one-year extension for their P&T review in addition to any one-year extension that was granted prior to their third-year contract review. Requests should be submitted to the department chair for approval on or before April 20 in the Spring semester prior to their scheduled P&T review. The requests will be forwarded to the Dean and Provost for approval and final action.

The updated promotion protocols for the AY 2022-2023 P&T cycle include a revised statement on the impact of COVID-19 that must be included in all letters of guidance to external reviewers. This statement recognizes that the pandemic’s impact, which began in March 2020, is continuing through the spring 2022 semester.

Provost Philip Rous

Dear Residential Students,

Following my communication to all Spring 2022 licensed residential students on Friday, January 7.  I am writing to let you know next steps for the start of Spring semester. Please read today's email to campus carefully for additional information required of all community members, including residents.

1. Per the UMBC requirement, all eligible students should seek a COVID-19 booster shot by the start of Spring semester, January 31. 

• To understand when you are eligible, review this chart here. 

• You can report your booster using the forms on this page. We strongly encourage all in our community to sign up for CRISP, our regional health exchange, so that we can automatically receive your COVID-19 vaccination and booster data.

• This requirement applies to all vaccine-eligible students living on-campus, including Walker Avenue Apartments. It may take up to 10 days to get an appointment and vaccination off-campus so make sure to plan ahead before you return to campus. For students in Maryland, visit here.  

• Booster vaccinations are also available on-campus, by appointment only, on the following scheduled dates:

• January 20

• February 3 

• All students with approved medical and religious exemptions must continue to comply with health and safety requirements and will receive separate instructions.

2. You must take a PCR test the day you arrive on campus. 

• All 9- and 12-month residents currently on-campus, including Walker Avenue Apartments, are required to take an on-campus PCR test between Friday, January 28 – Sunday, January 30. 

• All students moving on to campus must test on the first day that they arrive on campus. More information on how to test is available here.

• PCR Test kits will be available at all community desks during move-in.

• We also recommend that, if they have access, students should take an at-home rapid test the day before they arrive. 

• If you have recently tested positive for COVID-19, you must review and comply with this guidance before moving in.

While we know that we cannot fully prevent the spread of COVID-19 on campus, public health guidance is clear that full vaccination is crucial to reducing case transmission, thereby minimizing serious illness and hospitalization in our community. These actions are key to our ability to continue to offer on-campus housing, in-person classes, and campus activities. 

For additional questions regarding the COVID-19 requirements, please review these Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). Further information will be coming next week regarding move-in and the start of Spring semester. We appreciate your help and continued commitment to our community. We look forward to seeing you soon.

John Fox

Director, Residential Life

Dear USG Community,

As we turn our attention to the spring semester, we continue to face the challenges brought on by COVID-19, which now include the rapidly spreading Omicron variant. For the USG community, this meant starting back after the winter break with remote services and limited on-campus activity. We will continue limiting operations on the USG campus and encourage everyone to operate as virtually as possible until February 7, 2022. 

USG is working with its academic partners and programs to determine the amount of spring courses that can be offered virtually for the first few weeks of the semester, with the goal of decreasing the number of people on the USG campus during this time. The USG Health and Safety Committee will continue to reassess the situation, considering information from Montgomery County, the State of Maryland, and the University System of Maryland.  

Health and safety protocols for returning to the USG campus include the following:

• Everyone must comply with their home campus health and safety protocols on testing, vaccinations, symptom monitoring, etc.

• Everyone returning in-person must be fully vaccinated, per the previous USM mandate, unless they have been granted an exemption.

• Most of the partner universities are requiring a negative COVID-19 test prior to being on campus. Everyone should report the negative test in accordance with their home institution’s procedure. (USG staff will receive specific information on compliance with UMD health and safety protocols in a separate email.)

• Individuals are required to wear a KN95 mask over their mouth and nose while on the USG campus. There will be some KN95s at the security desk for emergency use. USG Staff will be provided masks from the Health and Safety team. For USG partners, masks can be picked up from program directors. In addition to the KN95s, partner institutions will provide their faculty and students with the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that is needed for their classroom, clinic, or lab.

• Everyone is urged to avoid high risk-of-transmission environments (e.g. no eating in groups, no studying in groups without masks).

• For those who need COVID-19 testing to meet university requirements, the USG COVID-19 testing clinic will reopen operations with the regular Monday (9am - 4pm) and Thursday (11am - 6pm) schedule beginning on January 17, 2022. This clinic is only open to the USG Community; it is not a public clinic. 

• We are also planning on continuing to host the free testing clinic on Wednesdays, which is open to the public and operated by Montgomery County. We will keep you informed of any updates to additional testing opportunities on the campus. In the meantime, there are also other free testing clinics in Montgomery County and throughout the state.

• Information on how to report a positive COVID-19 case or to ask questions about possible exposure can be found on the USG Onward website. There are specific hotline phone numbers, emails and contacts for each institution.

Reminder - Individuals should not come to the campus if: (1) they are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms; (2) they are waiting for the results of a COVID-19 test because of symptoms; or (3) they are sick in any way, even with a mild illness.

The pandemic has proven to be unpredictable in many ways and while we expect our USG community to be back on campus (with regular scheduled telework) after February 7th, we urge those who are planning large, in-person events for February or March to consider planning with hybrid or virtual alternatives, should COVID-19 measures require a greater shift to remote activities. Delaying events until later in the semester is also an option to consider. 

For more updates on health and safety guidelines and information, please visit the USG Onward website. 

Thank you for continuing to do your part in following these important measures. We wish everyone much success and good health this semester!