June 2020

Communications sent to the UW Bothell community in June

June 29, 2020 | Message to students about autumn quarter from campus leadership

This message is being sent to new and returning students at the University of Washington Bothell.

Join us for an online Back-to-School Info Session with UW Bothell leaders at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, July 10.

Dear Students,

For those of you preparing to join the Husky community for the first time, welcome! For those of you continuing your academic careers at the University of Washington Bothell, we look forward to welcoming you back this fall!

We know you and your families are eager to learn more about autumn quarter. Over the past few months, we have been hard at work preparing for how we can be safely together on all three UW campuses while offering robust experiences for students who aren't yet able to return in person. 

Protecting the health of our community is a responsibility we all share, and we will all need to be flexible. No one can predict with absolute certainty the course the pandemic will take, and if the virus is spreading too quickly in our state, it is possible that we may need to pivot to all-remote learning as we did in spring quarter. All of our decisions, policies and procedures are made in consultation with public health experts and are examined through an equity lens.

Our goal for the fall is to provide a high-quality Husky Experience for every student, inside or outside the classroom, as we prioritize your health and your academic success. Below, we outline autumn quarter instruction, campus health and safety requirements and an overview of campus life so you can make your plans for the fall.

Because the UW is on the quarter system, our classes start roughly a month later than many schools on the semester system. That means we have a bit more time to finalize course schedules, refine our in-person and remote teaching plans, and prepare our campus for you. All of what we outline below is based upon the state’s Safe Start process, including recent guidelines released by Gov. Jay Inslee for colleges and universities in Washington.

Classes & academics

Classes will begin as scheduled on Sept. 30, in a hybrid approach. We are offering as many in-person courses as possible, prioritizing hands-on courses, such as studio, clinical and lab courses. You can check the time schedule, which indicates which courses will be taught in-person and which will be taught remotely. The schedule will continue to be updated over the course of the summer as instructors finalize their plans.

To maintain a safe 6 feet of physical distance among students and instructors, smaller classes will meet in bigger rooms. Larger classes will be taught remotely. Depending on your area of study and where you are in your academic career, you may have several classes in person or none. To allow for appropriately distanced passing between classes, we will minimize scheduling courses back-to-back where physical distancing is difficult because of narrow hallways and limited queuing spaces.

Students who choose not to return to campus, such as for health reasons, will be able to continue their academic progress through remote instruction.

Plans are also being made to create some limited study spaces on campus for student use, following proper physical-distancing protocols. Students working remotely who need technology assistance can find information about available resources through UW Bothell’s Office of Information Technology.

We understand students are in different stages of their educational journey, and you can expect communications appropriate to your particular status throughout the summer:

  • Incoming first-year and transfer students will receive information regarding the autumn quarter from a variety of sources that include, but are not limited to, orientation staff, academic advisers, residential life staff and other campus staff and educators.
  • Returning undergraduate students will receive more information from their academic programs over the summer as the need arises.
  • Incoming and current graduate and professional students will hear from their individual programs regarding program-specific orientations and expectations, while UW’s Graduate School will offer a general online orientation to all graduate and professional students.
  • International students will receive information from the Center for International Education, given the varying and fluid restrictions on travel from and to many countries.

For all students, many services that help you make the most of your Husky Experience will be available this fall, in-person and remotely, including pre-major academic advising, career services, disability resources, the Academic Learning Center and the Student Success Center. Other forms of academic support and connected learning opportunities — such as undergraduate research, community engagement and the Makerspace — will also be available. Information about these and other services and programs will be updated online or shared throughout the summer. You can find the latest information on this student resources webpage and on UW Bothell’s coronavirus webpages.

Staying healthy

Protecting your health — and the health of your families and friends — will take a commitment from every one of us. Maintaining physical distancing may be tough, especially when you are meeting with friends or collaborating on projects and studying. But it is one of the most reliable ways to avoid spreading — or contracting — COVID-19. We expect all students to do their part.

To help us all stay safe, the state of Washington and the UW have established a number of best practices and policies, including when students, employees and visitors to campus are required to wear masks. The University’s medical clinic on the Seattle campus, Hall Health Center, is currently open and will remain ready to fully serve students’ medical needs, including COVID-19 testing. Contact tracing and voluntary expanded testing to spot any potential outbreaks early will also be part of our campus protocols. Contact tracing is already in place in partnership with UW's Environmental Health & Safety unit. A University-wide testing protocol is in development with faculty and clinical experts and will be finalized soon. This includes planning for expanded testing on or near the UW Bothell campus.

We will expect all students to practice the good and now familiar hygiene recommendations of public health officials: washing your hands often, using hand sanitizer and monitoring your temperature and other changes to your health.

If you get sick, we will require you to stay wherever you are living — on or off campus — and away from common areas and other people. UW Bothell’s Counseling Center continues to offer resources and services remotely.

Clubs, activities, housing & other gathering spaces

We know that being in community with others is important, especially during these challenging times. Whether you live on or near campus this autumn or decide to take courses remotely, we encourage you to participate fully in your experience. Student clubs and organizations will meet virtually and, when possible, in person. Virtual workouts and other remote programming will continue to be offered by Recreation & Wellness. The Activities & Recreation Center will open when it is safe to do so, adhering to public health guidelines that help protect your health and the health of our employees.

Gathering spaces such as the Diversity Center, the Veterans Resource Center and other facilities are being prepared to be open for in-person services and meetings. Many of their programs and services — and those offered by the Division of Student Affairs — continue to be available virtually.

We also look forward to welcoming residential students back to campus housing. Those who have applied to live on campus will be receiving communications outlining the next steps in the assignment process from Housing & Residential Life, including information regarding move-in dates and procedures, room assignments, the use of community spaces and other details about life on campus.

More questions?

Join us for an online Back-to-School Info Session with UW Bothell leaders at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, July 10. We invite you to send your questions in advance to uwbchlr@uw.edu. The key information shared at this event will be made available online after the event as well.

We encourage you to learn more about plans for the autumn quarter on this student resources webpage. And, as always, you can consult with your school or department for more information specific to your academic program.

Whether you are a first-time UW Bothell student or are continuing your academic career, by taking these and other simple steps, we can unite as Huskies on our campuses and worldwide, and continue our journey together, safely. Thank you for your resilience during these extraordinary times.

Sincerely,

Bjong Wolf Yeigh, Ph.D., F.ASME
Chancellor and Professor of Engineering

Sharon A. Jones
Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Professor of Engineering

Gowri Shankar
Interim Vice Chancellor for Planning & Administration and Associate Professor of Finance

June 29, 2020 | Message to Faculty and Staff about autumn quarter from campus leadership

 

Previewing the autumn quarter at UW Bothell

Join us for an online Back-to-School Info Session with UW Bothell leaders at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, July 10.

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past few months, people across the University have been hard at work preparing for how we can be safely together on our campuses when conditions in our region allow us to do so. We now are able to share more details about plans for autumn quarter. We are also sharing similar information with our new and returning students.

First, protecting the health of our community is a responsibility we all share. It’s also clear that we will all need to be flexible. No one can predict with absolute certainty the course the pandemic will take, and if the virus is spreading too quickly in our state, it is possible that we may have to again pivot to all-remote learning as we did in spring quarter. The Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma campuses are now in Phase 2. Masks are required on all campuses. See more information on Phase 2

It’s important to note that our plans for autumn quarter are based upon King County being in Phase 3 of the state’s Safe Start process by then, and our plans are aligned with guidelines recently released by Governor Inslee for colleges and universities in our state.

Our University’s public mission is important to many people. Our goal for the fall is to provide a high-quality Husky Experience for every student inside or outside the classroom, to support the vital research and service missions of the UW and to continue to provide the outstanding medical care that keeps our community healthy and has been so instrumental in combatting this virus.

Classes & academics

Classes will begin as scheduled on Sept. 30, in a hybrid approach. We are offering as many in-person courses as possible, prioritizing hands-on courses, such as studio, clinical and lab courses, and courses for first-year undergraduate and graduate students. The time schedule has been updated to indicate which courses will be taught in-person and which will be taught remotely. The schedule will continue to be updated over the course of the summer as instructors finalize their plans, and you can read more about how courses were prioritized in a message sent to instructors on Friday.

To maintain a safe 6 feet of physical distance among students and instructors, smaller classes will meet in bigger rooms. Larger classes will be taught remotely. To allow for appropriately distanced passing between classes, we will minimize scheduling courses back-to-back where physical distancing is difficult because of narrow hallways and limited queuing spaces.

Students who choose not to return to campus, such as for health reasons or because of travel considerations, will be able to continue their academic progress through remote instruction.

Plans are also being made to create some limited study spaces on campus for student use, following proper physical-distancing protocols. Students working remotely who need technology assistance can find information about available resources through UW Bothell’s Office of Information Technology.

Additionally, the many services that help students make the most of their Husky Experience will be available this fall, both in-person and remotely. Information about services and programs will be updated online and shared throughout the summer. You can find the latest information on this student resources webpage and on UW Bothell’s coronavirus webpages.

Staying healthy

Protecting our health and the health of our community will take a commitment from every one of us. We will expect all UW students to do their part and for each of us to model best practices.

All of our decisions, policies and procedures are based on consultation with public health experts and are examined through an equity lens. We recognize that every individual’s circumstances are different, and we know that some of us have underlying health conditions that put us more at risk for contracting COVID-19. Those instructors at higher risk should consult with their chairs or deans about modes of instruction and scheduling, and staff should consult with their supervisors. Accommodations can also be requested through Human Resources Disability Services in the same manner as other accommodations.

Each unit is completing a COVID-19 Prevention Plan and Safe Start Checklist, which details how it will protect its students and employees when we are able to return more people to campus. You can find more information about this process and additional resources on the Back to the Workplace Task Force webpage, including details on enhanced cleaning and a training video for all employees.

Additionally, the state of Washington and the University have established best practices and policies, including requiring students, employees and visitors to wear masks when they are indoors near other people and when outdoors if people are unable to stay 6 feet apart. Contact tracing and voluntary expanded testing to spot any potential outbreaks early will also be part of our campus protocols. Our testing protocol is in development with faculty and clinical expertise from across the University and will be finalized soon. This includes planning for expanded testing on or near the UW Bothell campus.

We will also expect everyone to practice the good and now familiar hygiene recommendations of public health officials: washing your hands often, using hand sanitizer and monitoring your temperature and other changes to your health.

Students, staff and faculty who get sick now or in the fall must stay home and self-isolate. Employees should follow their normal department procedure for calling out sick and are also required to contact Employee Health Services should they test positive for or be suspected to have COVID-19.

Campus gathering spaces

We know that being in community with others is important, especially during these challenging times. Students are being encouraged to participate fully in the Husky Experience. Student clubs and organizations will meet virtually and, when possible, in person. Virtual workouts and other remote programming will continue to be offered by Recreation & Wellness. The Activities & Recreation Center will open when it is safe to do so, adhering to public health guidelines that help protect the health of students and employees.

Gathering spaces such as the Diversity Center, the Veterans Resource Center and other facilities are being prepared to be open for in-person services and meetings. Many of their programs and services continue to be available virtually.

We also will welcome residential students back to campus housing. Those who have applied to live on campus will be receiving communications outlining the next steps in the assignment process from Housing & Residential Life, including information regarding move-in dates and procedures, room assignments, the use of community spaces and other details about life on campus.

Have questions?

Join us for an online Back-to-School Info Session with UW Bothell leaders at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, July 10. We invite you to send your questions in advance to uwbchlr@uw.edu. The key information shared at this session will be available online afterward.

These are extraordinary times and it has involved a herculean effort across the University to respond to this pandemic while also planning for the future. Thank you for your service to our students and community. Our collective efforts will enable us to unite as Huskies on our campuses and worldwide, advancing our shared mission and continuing our journey together, safely.

Sincerely,

Bjong Wolf Yeigh, Ph.D., F.ASME
Chancellor and Professor of Engineering

Sharon A. Jones
Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Professor of Engineering

Gowri Shankar
Interim Vice Chancellor for Planning & Administration and Associate Professor of Finance

June 17, 2020 | Update from the Back to the Workplace task force from Gowri Shankar, Interim Vice Chancellor, Planning & Administration

 

Update from the Back-to-the-Workplace/COVID-19 Prevention Plan task force

I am writing to give you an update from our Back-to-the-Workplace/COVID-19 Prevention Plan task force. UW Bothell is in Phase 1 of our Safe Start status. In this phase, only employees designated as critical can be working on campus and only at the direction of their supervisors. In-person instruction is not allowed except for essential clinical instruction that has been pre-approved. Events and gatherings are not permitted.

At UW Bothell, employees authorized to work in-person on campus during Phase 1 include employees in Facilities, Campus Safety, STEM research labs and faculty who need access to instructional material to teach their summer quarter courses. We would respectfully ask that all other employees continue to work remotely, both for their own safety and for the safety of our critical employees who are required to be on campus.

For context, the University of Washington is following Governor Inslee’s phased Safe Start plan. The University has intentionally chosen to move more slowly than King County or Pierce County regarding its current phase. While King County is expected to enter Phase 2 by June 18 and Pierce County is already in Phase 2, all the three UW campuses are in Phase 1 as of June 16, 2020, and will remain there until further notice. UW is adopting this cautious approach to ensure the safety of all our faculty, staff and students.

Note: This plan is about planning our eventual return to the work place, but it is also about COVID-19 prevention. When you do return to campus, we want you to be confident in our preparations and in your safety.

UW Bothell Back-to-Workplace updates

  • All units of the UW are required to complete a high-level campus plan for Phase 1. UW Bothell has completed this plan and has submitted it to the UW president and provost.
  • As part of the plan, we have notified site supervisors (school deans and heads of administrative units). This list of sites and supervisors may change as we move through phases.
  • Our first priority is to develop COVID-19 Prevention Plan templates for sites on campus where critical employees are at work at present. After that, we will proceed with developing prevention plans for all other sites, in conjunction with site supervisors.

What training and actions are required to be on campus?

These rules apply to ALL employees, whether they are working in critical sites today or making occasional trips to campus to pick up mail or supplies.

  1. Training: AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, all employees must complete the 20-minute online training video on COVID-19 prevention developed by UW Environmental Health & Safety. After you finish viewing, you and your (Workday) supervisor will receive emails confirming that you have completed the required training.
  2. Complete the attestation in Workday to confirm you do not have COVID-19 symptoms. This must be done by every person every day you visit campus.
  3. Wear a mask when on campus.
  4. Follow hygiene protocols and physical distancing protocols outlined in safety training and the Site Prevention Plan.

Supplies & space planning

At this time, we are prioritizing supplies and space planning work for critical work being done on campus at present at these sites: Facilities, Campus Safety, STEM research labs and Husky Village/Housing & Residential Life. We expect to complete this planning in the next two weeks and then take up planning for the other sites on campus. By the end of June, Sheri Willis, who is coordinating the COVID-19 Prevention Planning effort for the campus, will be contacting site supervisors about working on their site plans.

More information

I know you are working harder than ever to help our campus succeed during this demanding time. Thank you for efforts.

S. Gowri Shankar, Ph.D., CFA
Interim Vice Chancellor, Planning & Administration
University of Washington Bothell
425.352.5498 / shankar@uw.edu

June 5, 2020 | Academic Flexibility and Supporting Our Students from Wolf Yeigh, Chancellor, Sharon Jones, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, and Wayne Au, Acting Dean of Diversity & Equity

Dear Faculty Colleagues,

I’m sending this message on behalf of Chancellor Yeigh, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs Jones, and myself.

We want to start by thanking you for your hard work in this most difficult academic quarter.

We also want to share with you that campus leadership met with UW Bothell’s Black Student Union and ASUWB leadership yesterday, June 4th. Students in the call wanted their faculty to know that they are in a lot of pain and anguish right now regarding the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Aubery, as well as the unrest that has erupted as police have clashed with protestors locally and nationally.

While all of us are shocked by these national incidents of brutality and racism, remember that these are triggering events for those in our community who have been subject to racism their entire lives. They are hurting more.

Students also communicated very clearly that for many of them the emotional strain from both the pandemic and the political struggle has made it feel impossible to focus on school work at this time.

We are writing to make sure that UW Bothell faculty understand that they have options for making accommodations for students in this moment. UW President Cauce and Provost Richards expressly said that faculty can consider extending deadlines or determining a finals optional pathway. Chancellor Yeigh and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Jones followed up with an email informing faculty that they could consider removing assignments, cancelling final exams or projects, and grading students on work completed to date.

We are strongly encouraging you to consider doing what you can to accommodate our students. Do not wait for students to reach out to you. Realize that stress is paralyzing, and students often do not know what to ask for. Please actively reach out to them and communicate with them about what options you might offer. Many of our students are hurting, and they need your support.

While these requests address the short-term need that is pressing as we approach the end of the quarter, we bear much of the responsibility for ensuring there is also long-term change. We are committed to this, and you will hear more soon about how we can do this together.

Thank you — again — for all you are doing.

Wolf Yeigh, Chancellor
Sharon Jones, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs
Wayne Au, Acting Dean of Diversity & Equity

June 3, 2020 | Back to the Workplace planning from Gowri Shankar, Interim Vice Chancellor, Planning & Administration

The UW Back to the Workplace Task Force established by UW President Ana Mari Cauce has provided guidance on the steps that must be taken before we can bring employees back to the UW Bothell campus in a safe manner. The guidelines require our campus to develop a COVID-19 Prevention Plan that emphasizes physical distancing, developing procedures for sick personnel, practicing good hygiene, cleaning and disinfecting surfaces, providing personal protective equipment (or PPE) and developing communications and training strategies.

A UW Bothell task force is at work developing our COVID-19 Prevention Plan that will be filed with the president's office late next week. This task force also will identify various sites within our campus that may need to have a site-specific COVID-19 Prevention Plan. Working with campus leaders, we will identify site supervisors who will monitor COVID-19 health and safety requirements and address questions and concerns from employees in those sites.

Please see this new “back to work plan” webpage that provides additional details and links where you can find more guidance on UW Back to the Workplace policies and timelines. As plans develop and move into implementation, these webpages will be updated, so I encourage you to check back regularly for the latest information.

Ensuring the safety and well-being of all our staff, faculty and students is the primary objective behind these COVID-19 Preventions Plans. In the coming weeks, we will develop communication platforms to handle questions and discuss policies.

In the meantime, please stay safe and take care. I am grateful for all that you do as we handle the unprecedented challenges posed by the pandemic.

Gowri

S. Gowri Shankar, Ph.D., CFA
Interim Vice Chancellor, Planning & Administration
University of Washington | Bothell
425.352.5498 / shankar@uw.edu

Related links

June 1, 2020 | Special Message from the Chancellor and VCAA: Supporting Our Students

Dear UW Bothell Community

Hopefully you have seen the recent message from UW President Ana Mari Cauce, Provost Mark Richards and other faculty leaders, urging the faculty to consider offering accommodations to students as the spring quarter wraps up — and recognizing that faculty of color among us may be coping with added stresses, all in light of recent struggles over racial injustice and violence happening in our country.

We are hearing from the Associated Students of the University of Washington Bothell, the Student Diversity Center and the Black Student Union that our Black and Brown students in particular are experiencing intense emotional anguish, anger and pain about the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor, as well as the police responses to protests that have happened since last week around the country and in the Puget Sound region.

Additionally, we know from data that low income and communities of color are at highest risk for serious illness related to COVID-19 and that in King County and in Snohomish County Blacks and Latinos are disproportionately more likely both to catch coronavirus and to die from its complications. We know that our local Asian populations are experiencing a sharp increase in coronavirus-related racist attacks.

Especially given the broad diversity of the UW Bothell student population, our students are likely feeling intense stresses related to illness, economic hardship, racial hostility and political unrest — because of both the pandemic and the violence against the Black community and others.

We join President Cauce and Provost Richards in recognizing that in this moment many of our students are having difficulty focusing on schoolwork, and we encourage faculty to be as flexible as possible with end-of-quarter assignments and exams. For instance, in addition to extending deadlines, faculty could also consider canceling assignments or exams and grading students on work done-to-date.

Please know we acknowledge and appreciate everything all of you — our faculty, staff and students — are doing to persevere and to support each other during this most difficult of quarters.

Bjong Wolf Yeigh, Ph.D., F.ASME,
Chancellor and Professor of Engineering

Sharon A. Jones
Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs