Hi Ole Miss parents and families, Allow us to introduce ourselves—we are Merrill Magruder, Coordinator of Family Programs, and Sydney DuPriest, Associate Director of Campus Communication and Engagement, and we’re excited to have your students back on campus and in Oxford for the spring semester. Every day, we have the privilege of seeing the care demonstrated by our staff and faculty who work tirelessly to ensure the success of our students. That selfless service and supportive community has inspired us to combine forces and collaborate on a new project. Twice each month, we’ll share information with you. From COVID-19 guidance to updates from Student Affairs and even a great photo or two from our beautiful campus, these emails will include updates tailored just for our parents and families. It’s our hope that these letters will keep you connected to our campus and provide you with assurance, guidance and avenues to get answers to your questions. Spring 2021 COVID-19 operations Dr. Charlotte Pegues, interim vice chancellor for Student Affairs, emailed your student a handy Top 10 list of COVID-19 policies and updates, such as how to get tested for COVID-19, event protocols and faculty videos about what to expect from each of the four formats being used to conduct classes. See more about class formats below under “Staying informed." How students can be tested for COVID-19 The university is providing COVID-19 testing again this semester. Students with symptoms of COVID-19 can be tested at University Health Services on campus or at clinics in Oxford. In addition, we encourage all students who are not showing symptoms to participate in asymptomatic testing. More people doing asymptomatic testing helps keep our campus safe and healthy and gives the university more info to decide if it can hold more events. A COVID-19 test might be one of the most important tests our students take during the spring semester—we appreciate them doing their part! And it is helpful to know that a student’s positive COVID-19 test should be reported to the Health Center at (662) 915-7274. Vaccination on campus While it is not clear when college students will be eligible for the vaccine, UM’s Vaccine Distribution and Administration Task Force is prepared for when we receive doses from the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH). No one will be compelled to receive a vaccine, and the university will follow MSDH prioritization when determining who is eligible. More info will be shared on our vaccination page and with the university community as it’s available. And if you have been wondering about how mRNA works in our bodies and in the existing vaccines, be sure to check out this helpful video from one of our professors in the School of Pharmacy. You can also check out this helpful vaccine Mythbusters document. Staying informed You can learn more about your student’s class formats from these videos on our Keep Learning site. Please also subscribe to UM’s weekly COVID digests and visit the university’s coronavirus.olemiss.edu website for more information. Your student receives daily email announcements from UM Today as well as a weekly student newsletter, The Powder Blue. Parents and families can also subscribe to The Powder Blue here. Events and looking ahead The Student Activities Association and the Associated Student Body hosted its first monthly “Flagship Friday” during the first week of the semester to give students more options for safe and fun socializing. We’re so proud of the way our students have found creative ways to socialize safely and succeed academically throughout the last year! We continue to work to enhance and expand student engagement opportunities. See below for highlights from the month of February. Upcoming events Feb. 9: Black History Month keynote address Feb. 16: Mardi-Party Feb. 19: Ole Miss Baseball season opener Feb. 20: Rebelthon Feb. 23: Ole Miss Baseball home opener Feb. 24: Rappelling clinic See more events in The Forum Academic dates March 1: Last day to submit applications for May and August diplomas, deadline for course withdrawal and midterm grades due April 23: Last day of classes April 26-30: Final exams April 29-May 2: Class of 2021 Commencement May 6-8: Class of 2020 Commencement See the full Spring 2021 academic calendar We hope you find this helpful! We are grateful for your involvement and feedback as our university operations continue to evolve alongside COVID-19. As we reminded our students in The Powder Blue, this situation is temporary, and we can help each other through it. For questions or comments, please reach out to Merrill at merrill@olemiss.edu.  And feel free to suggest topics for future letters. We look forward to sharing these with you all semester long. Best, Merrill Magruder Coordinator of Family Programs Ole Miss Family Association Editor of the Ole Miss Family Association newsletter Sydney DuPriest Associate Director of Campus Communication and Engagement Office of Marketing and Communications Editor of the UM student newsletter, The Powder Blue P.S. We thought it might be helpful to introduce ourselves further! You may know Merrill from her role in the Ole Miss Family Association and the OMFA newsletters. Sydney works in UM’s Office of Marketing and Communications, focusing on student engagement and intra-campus communication. In addition to starting The Powder Blue last semester, she collaborates with The Office of Student Affairs and student interns to find creative ways to keep students up-to-date and engaged with the Ole Miss community. Around campus... Be sure to check out more scenes from around campus in "This week in photos."

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