February 18, 2022
Dear students, faculty, and staff,
Below, we report to you three things you need to know today.
COVID-19 Boosters
Booster vaccinations are extremely effective at preventing COVID-19 and are now widely available! The HCC has vaccination appointments available now for students who have not yet received a booster, and Multnomah County has established a series of free vaccination sites around the Portland Metro area.
Individuals who have received a COVID booster are not required to quarantine following an exposure, which greatly reduces the impact of these situations for both the exposed individual and the college as a whole. As a reminder, all students are required to upload a record of their COVID-19 booster vaccination to the HCC's Student Health Portal, following these instructions; those who do not complete this step may face restrictions to their activities on campus, including exclusion from in person classes, housing probation, or loss of swipe access.
Surveillance testing next week
Next week, COVID-19 surveillance testing will be available on Tuesday and Thursday, February 22 and 24, from 8:30 AM to 3:00 PM in Greenwood. All community members are highly encouraged to test each week. Those who are not fully vaccinated (including boosters, if eligible) are required to test on campus once weekly.
New COVID-19 cases
Since our last report, we have been notified of four new COVID-19 cases in Reed community members who were on campus in the previous 14 days. All four of these cases were identified through on campus surveillance testing. The positive individuals were contacted promptly and given instructions and support to isolate. Any Reed community members identified as potentially exposed were notified and provided with guidance on testing and quarantine, as appropriate for their individual situations.
If you have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to the COVID-19 Risk Assessment Group at coronavirusquestions@reed.edu.
In health,
Madison Riethman, MPH, CPH
COVID-19 Response Coordinator & Health Project Manager
Reporting on behalf of the COVID-19 Risk Assessment Group
Gary Granger, Director of Community Safety
Mandy Heaton, Executive Director of Communications & Public Affairs
Karnell McConnell-Black, Vice President for Student Life
Kathy Oleson, Dean of the Faculty & Professor of Psychology
Tawana Parks, Dean of Students
Hugh Porter, Vice President for College Relations & Planning
Madison Riethman, COVID-19 Response Coordinator & Health Project Manager
Suzy Renn, Professor of Biology
Timmie Rochon, Medical Services Director
April Sams, Director of Risk Management & Environmental Health and Safety
Lynn Valenter, Vice President of Finance and Treasurer
PS: Our COVID-19 dashboard includes current information on the total number of cases, vaccination rate, and other public health indicators. Additionally, all our COVID-19 communications are cataloged here.