June 11, 2021

Dear students, faculty, and staff,

I write to you with our weekly update from the COVID-19 Risk Assessment Group (CRAG). We have highlighted essential points in yellow.

New Cases at Reed

Since our last update, we have identified no new confirmed COVID-19 cases at Reed. We continue to report all associated COVID-19 cases online, found in the "Total Cases" section of the dashboard.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Oregon governor Kate Brown has announced that many Oregon COVID-19 restrictions, including those on higher education and workplace operations, will be lifted when 70% of the eligible state population has received at least one dose of a vaccine. Currently, 67.4% of eligible Oregonians have received at least one dose of vaccine.

To inform the development of a safe and healthy campus, Reed asks all community members to share their COVID vaccination records with the HCC (students) or HR (staff and faculty). To do so, and for more information, please visit the Reed Vaccine FAQ.

Face coverings in indoor spaces

This week, the COVID Risk Assessment Group assessed the possibility of allowing fully vaccinated individuals to forego face coverings and physical distancing in indoor spaces. While this is permitted under Oregon state regulations, it requires institutions to have a process to review, verify, and enforce vaccination status for all individuals. We expect this requirement to be lifted once 70% of eligible Oregonians receive at least one dose of vaccine.

Currently, we ask all community members to continue to wear face coverings and maintain physical distancing while in indoor spaces. If Oregon does not meet the 70% vaccination threshold by July 15, Reed will establish a process that allows vaccinated individuals to go without masks and distancing at that time.

Surveillance testing next week

Next week, surveillance testing will take place on Monday and Thursday, June 14 and 17, from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM in the Student Union. The sign up sheet for these dates will be sent via email today.

At this time, all students, faculty, and staff members who will be interacting with others in person on campus should complete one test per week, regardless of vaccination status. For more information about the Reed COVID-19 surveillance testing program, please visit our website here.

If you have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to the COVID-19 Risk Assessment Group at coronavirusquestions@reed.edu.

Sincerely,

Madison Riethman, MPH, CPH
COVID-19 Response Coordinator and Health Project Manager
Health & Counseling Services
Reporting on behalf of the COVID-19 Risk Assessment Group

PS: As a reminder, you can track all our COVID-19 communications to members of the Reed Community here.