About
Gonzaga’s Jesuit, Catholic, Humanistic education will challenge and inspire you.
August 10, 2021
Dear Students & Families:
The beginning of the fall 2021 semester is just a few weeks away, and everyone here on campus is excited for your upcoming arrival. While we all wished COVID-19 would be a thing of the past, unfortunately we know that is not the case. However, we also know that by working together, we will be able to provide the in-person educational experience you deserve with your health and safety as our top priority.
As the pandemic continues to be a dynamic situation with the Delta variant spreading at a rapid pace, University leadership has continued to work closely with national, state and local public health officials to formulate academic and operational plans focused on everyone’s health and safety. More than ever, we believe that vaccination is the best way to keep ourselves and the surrounding community healthy and safe in order to achieve our goals for this academic year. This is why we have required all students and employees to be vaccinated prior to the fall semester.
Please find here the Undergraduate Student Arrival and Return to Gonzaga Guide. This publication provides all the information you need to prepare for on-campus classes and activities this fall. Resources in place to support you are also included. Take the time to read it closely. Reach out to the appropriate campus resource if you have questions or need further explanation on any of its contents, including Residence Life and Dining.
Here are a few essential highlights:
- Vaccination Required: All students and employees who will be on campus at some point during the academic year are required to submit full vaccination status in order to return to campus. This means you are either fully vaccinated or you have an approved and verified medical or religious exemption. Update your vaccine status in the Online Vaccination Portal immediately – including if you have received your first shot – in order to avoid a ‘hold’ being placed on your enrollment. If you have questions about vaccination, or the enrollment hold, please contact the COVID-19 Hotline at (509) 313-7070.
- Masks Required: While we had hoped to start the academic year mask-free, it has become clear that the safest, most prudent, course of action is to start the year requiring the wearing of masks indoors in congregate settings such as classrooms, hallways and meeting spaces, so that we can assess the prevalence of infection on campus and assure a successful start to the year. This requirement may be lifted for vaccinated campus members in coming weeks, and we will continue to assess this policy throughout the year. However, individuals who are not fully vaccinated, for any reason, will be required to wear masks and physical distance for potentially the duration of the academic year.
- In-Person Classes: Most classes, with few exceptions, will be offered in-person, face-to-face. The option to attend classes remotely or view recorded classes later will not exist with the exception of special arrangements due to prolonged sickness or other circumstances. Physical distancing in the classroom is no longer required, however, as the semester begins all students – vaccinated or not – will be required to wear a mask while in the classroom, laboratory, or on campus to help mitigate potential spread of COVID-19.
- ZagCheck Discontinuation: ZagCheck is no longer required for daily reporting, but we ask that you monitor for symptoms daily. If you are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms please stay in your room (or do not come to campus), and report your symptoms to Health and Counseling Services.
- COVID-19 Testing: Gonzaga will not be offering walk-in testing, but will offer Signs, Symptoms and Exposure (SSE) testing, and targeted testing of close contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases on campus.
- Events and Guests: We are looking forward to welcoming guests back to campus. Information about vaccine requirements and how to visit campus safety is available here. In-person events will be held in accordance with public health guidelines, with more information to come as the semester begins.
The final pages of the Guide include a COVID-19 Notice & Acknowledgement of Student Risk – a document that requires you to indicate you have read the publication and understand your role as a student. It is essential that you complete this final step before coming to campus. Simply log in to Zagweb to sign the form. Students who do not complete this step will have a hold put on their account.
In addition to reading the Guide, check out new FAQs and lists of resources, and watch for a video message later this week from Dr. Kent Porterfield, Vice-Provost of Student Affairs, who has additional highlights and information to share.
This last year has shown us more than ever the power that commitment, encouragement, and tenacity have in our success. As we prepare for our next academic year, we continue to set the stage for another thoughtful and carefully managed educational experience, relying on our community to be active participants in mitigating risk and protecting one another. Caring for one another, and working together, is who we are as a community of Zags.
Together, we will once again Zag On.
Sincerely,
Thayne M. McCulloh, D. Phil.
President