Prioritizing Health for the Holiday Season and over Break
COVID-19 Guidance for College Students Returning Home For Thanksgiving and the Semester Break
Next week, students will be returning home for Thanksgiving and staying home to finish the semester remotely prior to a semester break. Although we encourage you to take some time to relax during the break, please do not relax your precautions regarding COVID. The virus does not take breaks for holidays.
Students and families should take precautions to keep everyone safe and healthy, such as continuing to wear a mask and maintaining physical distance.
One negative COVID-19 test is not a guarantee of safety for loved ones and the community, as that one test represents your status during one moment in time.
As cases continue to increase rapidly across the United States, the safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to celebrate at home with the people you live with.
Gatherings with family and friends who do not live with you can increase the chances of getting or spreading COVID-19 or the flu.
Dear Students,
As the semester starts to wind down and you finish your course work, we wanted to remind you that the Massachusetts Department of Health is requiring college students to receive a flu vaccine.
The November 15th deadline to submit documentation of your flu vaccine to Health Services has passed. Thank you to all of you who were vaccinated at one of the ten on-campus flu clinics this fall (your documentation was automatically submitted to us), or who have submitted documentation of a flu vaccine that you received at an alternate site this fall.
If you have not yet received the vaccine/uploaded your documentation, we ask that you do so as soon as possible so that Health Services can record your compliance with this new state mandate. Please submit documentation to Health Services using the online verification form.
If you have not received a seasonal flu vaccine, please call your primary care provider or locate a local pharmacy offering flu vaccine as soon as possible, book an appointment if needed, and have your insurance information with you! Some local pharmacies that offer flu vaccines are located close to campus, including CVS, Target, Rite-Aid and Walgreens. Please see the following links for information about the flu vaccine availability for these local stores:
https://www.cvs.com/immunizations/flu
https://www.walgreens.com/topic/pharmacy/seasonal-flu.jsp
https://www.riteaid.com/pharmacy/services/vaccine-central/immunization-information/flu
You can also visit www.vaccinefinder.org to find more location options.
As we prepare for the break, possible travel and the holiday season, please consider how your plans can be modified to reduce the spread of flu and COVID-19 to keep your friends, families, and communities healthy and safe. CDC offers the following considerations to slow the spread of COVID-19 during small gatherings. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html
We hope you have a good end to your semester and a restful winter break.
Sincerely,
Maria Sullivan, Director of Health Services and the Health and Wellness Team