Info and reminders as we begin fall term

September 30, 2020

Dear Colleagues,

As fall classes begin, I want to thank everyone for their hard work, dedication, and commitment to our students. Clearly, this isn’t how any of us anticipated the fall term going. But I am grateful to each of you for the efforts in teaching remotely, online, in HyFlex, or in-person so that, despite the ongoing challenges of the pandemic, our students continue to receive an excellent education.

There are a few things that I wanted to highlight for you as classes begin. They include:

  • A new, no-cost transcription service is available in Zoom. This is a live, auto-generated transcription service for classroom settings or meetings. Enable this feature in Zoom to improve access for students requiring accommodation and to allow all students this universal design option.
  • A reminder that we are continuing for fall term the commitment made in spring term that we will not capture material from remote courses, other than what may be necessary for academic continuity. This does not impact applicable UO policies, Collective Bargaining Agreement articles or agreements related to the development of online courses.
  • How to handle a situation where a student in an in-person course or experience notifies you that they have tested positive or have been exposed to COVID-19. Please contact the Corona Corps. The Corona Corps helps manage contact tracing and provides support to affected students and employees. We ask that you not do any additional notification beyond the Corona Corps. It’s important to maintain privacy for those affected and their health information. Call 541-346-2292 or email careteam@uoregon.edu.
  • A reminder about putting clear language into your syllabus about COVID-19 guidelines for your class. You can refer to this information to help your class run smoothly, given the issues we are facing with the pandemic.
  • If you are teaching in-person, make sure you let your department or program head know if you have any issues. Most instruction for fall term is remote. But if you have an issue with your in-person class, please talk immediately with your department or program head, who will consult with the dean in your area to explore other options.
  • Checking this resource if you have any questions about teaching remotely. You can also find more information on the provost’s website. TEP and UO Online are always available to you for individual consultation and will be conducting workshops throughout the term to support your teaching efforts.
  • This COVID-19 building status map shows buildings listed in one of three categories: open, limited access, or restricted. “Open” facilities will be physically unlocked at strategic entryways during the posted hours, and will be available to faculty, staff, and students for various activities. “Limited access” facilities will remain locked and accessible to those faculty, staff, and students who need access through their UO ID card or via other controlled access. “Restricted” facilities will remain locked but will be accessible to faculty and staff through their UO ID card or other controlled access. These facilities will be available to students by appointment only.

    If a building is not on the map, it should be considered to have a default status of “restricted.” Please contact Krista Dillon of the UO Incident Management Team at kristam@uoregon.edu with any questions about your building status or access for faculty, staff, and students.
     
  • If you have an in-person class and students find that they don’t have card access to the course in a limited-access building, please advise them to contact the Registrar’s office to request access for the building in which their class is held.

Thanks for all you do to support our students. I hope that your fall term starts well under these most unusual conditions. Take good care.

Sincerely,

Janet Woodruff-Borden
Executive Vice Provost for Academic Affairs