| Dear UMKC Family,
With confirmed cases of coronavirus in Missouri and Kansas, we now more than ever must work together to focus on the health and well-being of our campus and to limit the potential impact of COVID-19 on our community. As of Monday morning, there was one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the Kansas City area in Johnson County, Kansas, and one “presumed positive” case in Missouri in the St. Louis area. Currently there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 connected to UMKC.
You can expect to receive a weekly update with the newest information regarding university guidelines and health precautions. Communications will be distributed more often if needed. A web page for our UMKC community has been developed to provide COVID-19 resources, and information is updated frequently.
A campus committee that includes emergency preparedness and health officials as well as academic, student affairs and HR leaders meets daily to plan how to respond to the effects of this outbreak on our university and the continuity of our operations. We welcome your thoughts and considerations at umkcfeedback@umkc.edu.
The university is providing recommendations and resources based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) while keeping in mind the distinct needs of our students, faculty and staff.
Here are important considerations for our UMKC family:
Travel
As a preventive measure, due to the Level 3 travel advisories issued by the CDC, university-sponsored travel to Level 3 geographies is prohibited for students, faculty and staff. We also are discontinuing visits from Level 3 countries. As of Monday morning, those countries include China, Iran, Italy and South Korea.
Health monitoring
The university is asking all community members returning to the United States from mainland China, Iran, Italy and South Korea to stay home and self-monitor for 14 days. After the self-monitoring period ends and before they can return to campus, people must provide health information to the UMKC Student Health and Wellness Center at 816-235-6133, and receive approval to return to campus.
Classes and working online
The University of Missouri System, which includes UMKC and three other universities in the state, has posted a teaching resources website to help maintain teaching continuity in the event of a campus closure.
Health preparations
We have posted hand-washing signs in restrooms on our Health Sciences and Volker campuses. We have added mobile hand-sanitizer stations at large campus events; dispensers are already near main entrances to buildings.
Furthermore, our facilities management team is working with janitorial staff to conduct more frequent cleaning and disinfecting of high-touch surfaces and restrooms in university buildings.
Because this health situation is evolving rapidly, we will update the university’s COVID-19 web page frequently, and we ask that you review it for the latest updates. Everyone in our community is advised to practice everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of illness on campus. During the uncertainty surrounding the public health concerns of COVID-19, we encourage everyone to provide support, empathy, patience and compassion to each other as part of our UMKC Culture of Care.
Sincerely,
C. Mauli Agrawal, Ph.D. Jennifer Lundgren, Ph.D., FAED
Chancellor Interim Provost
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