Category: Alerts

CLEMSON – The City of Clemson and Clemson University announced Sunday increased detection of COVID-19 throughout the Clemson community. In the last week alone, the State of South Carolina has seen more than 6,000 new infections of COVID-19 – more than 26 percent of the total cases since the beginning of the pandemic.

City and University officials have begun testing wastewater coming into the Cochran Road Wastewater Treatment Plant, and initial results indicate the presence of elevated COVID-19 levels in the community.

This week, South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) has reported an increase in the number of cases in individuals under 30 years of age. As a result, both State Epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell and DHEC physician consultant Brannon Traxler reiterated the importance of individual behaviors and actions being taken, and maintained, to help stop the spread of the disease.

As the State of South Carolina continue to experience rapid community spread, Clemson city and University officials strongly urge all individuals to wear face coverings in public and to maintain social distancing. More information about steps individuals should take if they test positive or have known exposure is available on the University’s website at www.clemson.edu/coronavirus.

Dear Clemson Family:

As we first said a month ago, and as I told our Board of Trustees again yesterday, Clemson University is laser focused on returning to on-campus learning and living this fall. We are excited about the prospect of being back with our students and we are committed to returning to our campuses in a manner prioritizing the health and well-being of our students, employees and communities.

This undertaking is incredibly complex and we are intent on being as thoughtful and data-driven as possible in our approach. The University’s Executive Leadership Team and the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) have been working every day for weeks on a methodical, phased plan that we are confident will allow us to welcome students back to campus in August.

Our three-phase process to returning in the fall is scheduled to begin June 1 and establishes guidelines for the University to respond to COVID-19 in coordination with federal and state recommendations and orders. The framework identifies key medical indicators related to the prevalence of COVID-19 in our communities and will provide guidance as we progress from one phase to the next, expanding operations as we go, while allowing flexibility to our employees during this challenging period.

Additional details about the framework will be made available in the near future, but here is an overview of each phase:

• Phase 1 features limited on-campus University operations for those faculty and staff members who cannot complete their work functions adequately while working remotely. We anticipate only a small percentage of employees returning during this phase. Employees should not return to their workspaces unless instructed to do so by their supervisor. Those who return will do so under specific safety guidelines related to social distancing, face coverings and other precautions, which we will share with employees and supervisors in the next week. In alignment with state regulations, only essential business travel will be allowed during this phase and our campuses will remain closed for events and group activities.
• Phase 2 involves bringing back a moderate number of employees to their workplaces under strict safety guidelines and with an emphasis on social distancing regulation and guidance. As in Phase 1, those considered to be medically vulnerable, or who have care responsibilities for a vulnerable individual, will continue to work remotely.
• Phase 3 will result in a return to on-campus instruction and activities, and the return of nearly all employees to their workspaces. Detailed safety protocols will be put into place, and aggressively communicated.

Each phase includes a gradual expansion of available areas across all our locations, increases in limits to sizes of meetings and social gatherings and a consistent emphasis on non-pharmaceutical interventions to reduce the risk of spread to individuals and through the community. The University also is exploring a range of options related to testing and contact tracing.

We anticipate spending at least 14 days each in Phases 1 and 2 to assess the COVID-19 trends provided by the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. We also will closely monitor conditions on our campuses and surrounding areas, and will be prepared to remain in a given phase for longer than 14 days – or revert to a previous phase – if the health indicators warrant such action. We also expect the University to gain additional information as we work through each phase that will help guide future actions.

Much of the work in Phases 1 and 2 is designed to allow our faculty, staff and researchers to return to their workspaces, including laboratories and research facilities, in a safe manner while we continue to plan for the fall.

Our academic and safety leaders have been working tirelessly on options for instruction and an academic calendar for the fall semester. Provost Jones and his academic leadership team met with faculty and academic staff across all our colleges this week to solicit their feedback to our draft academic plan. We plan to start the academic year as previously scheduled.

Additionally, sign-up for on-campus housing will be completed in the next week. Our intent is to have as many students as is reasonable living on campus, taking into account the necessary modifications to protect vulnerable students and temporarily isolate any students who become ill with COVID-19.

As I have said before, these are uncharted waters for higher education – and many aspects of life. We are keenly aware of the strong desire of our students and other members of the Clemson Family to return to some semblance of normal, and I can assure you that is our goal.

At the same time, we intend to take the time we need to be as thoughtful and comprehensive as possible in our decision-making. The overarching priority of the University is the health and safety of students, faculty, staff and the community. I appreciate your patience as we finalize details to minimize the potential for an outbreak at our campuses and protect the most vulnerable, while driving toward a fully operational fall semester.

I am grateful for our faculty and staff who continue to do outstanding work under very challenging circumstances. And to our new and returning students, we can’t wait to see you later this summer –  as well as our May 2020 graduates whom we will welcome back for commencement when it is feasible to do so.

Stay safe – and Go Tigers!

Jim Clements
President

Dear Clemson Family:

You are receiving this message just as our May graduation ceremonies should have been wrapping up, capping a bittersweet week for faculty, staff and, of course, all our newest graduates and their families.

At the same time, that we couldn’t all be together to celebrate the Class of 2020 this week (and we will have that celebration in the future) in no way diminishes the pride and joy we feel for our graduates.

We did our best to commemorate this milestone occasion by expressing our love and excitement this week across our social media channels and through a special website we created specifically for the Class of 2020. I also had the pleasure of narrating a special tribute video to our newest graduates, which can be seen here.

This the largest group of graduates we have ever celebrated. Nearly 4,200 undergraduates, master’s and doctoral students earned degrees this spring. This group includes some of the most accomplished students in the country, including two dozen students recognized by the most prestigious national scholarship foundations for their academic success, leadership accomplishments and commitment to service.

The Class of 2020 includes more than 500 first-generation graduates who, I’m confident, have discovered the transformational nature of a college education during their time at Clemson. We also graduated 57 student-athletes who have made us proud with their accomplishments in the classroom and on the athletic fields.

As part of our graduation celebration this week, each of our deans shared a letter to their graduates. They’re all wonderful, and I found this passage from Dean Cynthia Young from the College of Science particularly appropriate for all our graduates:

“They say that there is something special in these hills. Take some of that special magic wherever you go. And please make sure you carve out time in your lives to come back every once in a while to let us know how you are doing and to see how you can help those who follow in your footsteps.”

‘Laser focus’ on a fall return

As we close out this extraordinary semester, our staff and faculty are already fully engaged in the complex planning necessary to ensure a safe return to as close to normal operations as is possible this fall.

We are approaching the fall with a ‘laser focus’ on returning to in-person learning, as our Associate Vice President for Public Safety Greg Mullen told our Board of Trustees last month. At the same time, we recognize that our new normal will look different than in the past, and that a return to having our students back on campus can only occur in a way that is consistent with the best public health practices. For example, any scenario that involves having students back on campus will be accompanied by the capacity for COVID-19 testing and adherence to CDC guidance related to safe physical distancing, face coverings and more.

We will release the details of our plans in the near future. I can say, however, that we are looking at a phased approach that first involves bringing our employees back to our campuses and locations this summer to prepare for the fall semester.

Congratulations to the Class of 2020 – and to the faculty, staff, family, friends and others who played a critical role in your success. I could not be more proud of each of you.

In that spirit, I’d like to leave you with these words from Timothy R. Boosinger, our Interim Dean of the College or Architecture, Arts and Humanities, to our newest grads:

“Your achievement is in no way diminished by our current circumstances. If anything, it is amplified. You are part of a historic graduating class.”

“I have been inspired by how you and your fellow students have risen to our present challenges. Hold close your friendships with classmates. Hold close those bonds, and also know that you are part of a larger Clemson Family and a larger world.”

Again, all my best wishes to our amazing Class of 2020. I look forward to seeing you all again soon.

Go Tigers!

Jim Clements
President

With a targeted goal of a safe return to in-person classes for the fall 2020 semester, Clemson officials announced an extension of the University’s current modified operational status through May 31. The University previously announced the suspension of all statewide events through the end of May, and all summer instruction will be conducted online. All faculty and staff should continue to work remotely unless previously approved for on-campus access.

University leadership, in conjunction with the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), is developing a phased plan which allows for the resumption of on-campus operations as soon as circumstances allow, with the health of students, faculty, staff and the community as its overarching priority.

More details about the phased approach, with specific guidance for faculty and staff including safety guidelines and protocols and the use and availability of community protective equipment (face coverings, PPE), will be provided soon.

Employees currently authorized to work on campus are expected to follow CDC recommendations relating to face coverings and other ways to protect yourself and others, to slow the spread of COVID-19 and assist the University to reach its goal of a safe return to in-person classes for Fall 2020.

Issued by University Relations