By Representative and USNH Board member Marjorie Smith
On Wednesday, August 4, the board of the University System of New Hampshire voted 18-1 to open up all USNH campuses under certain conditions. I serve on the board, occupying the seat for the Speaker or his designee. The Senate President also serves on the board, these positions having come about through legislation designed to strengthen the ties between the legislature and USNH.
Almost simultaneous to the institutions closing in March, work began to ascertain what factors must be weighed in order to determine how and whether or not the institutions would operate starting with the fall 2020 semester.
For the past few months, the board has met for countless hours developing a checklist, and then working through the checklist with the administration. Among the conditions that had to be met were: the rates of publicly reported coronavirus infection and percentage of positive tests in New Hampshire; guidelines from the CDC and the state; reliable diagnostic testing capabilities and procedures sufficient to test and monitor the entire campus, with subsequent testing on a regular basis; resources and procedures for the rapid identification, and immediate isolation, treatment and referral of infected individual; and a coordinated, comprehensive rapid contact tracing and surveillance system.
Other conditions included: sufficient provisions for physical spacing, cleaning, and personal protective equipment for all persons in all campus facilities and activities; explicit conduct expectations and consequences for violation of those expectations, and required acknowledgement by all faculty, staff, students, and others who are authorized to visit the campus; a plan for responding to an outbreak on campus including a specific number of positive tests that would trigger the plan; on-going metrics and triggers for determining when alterations will be made, including closing the institution to on-campus educational programs if necessary; and reasonable capability and capacity for effective remote delivery of educational programs, both as an adjunct to on-campus programs and a complete substitute in the event we are forced to close the on-campus programs prior to the end of the fall semester.
The board also required that the governor and DHHS support the decision and the plans based on that decision.
The presidents, working with faculty, students, employees, the surrounding communities and the state, have submitted responses that laid out a series of actions acknowledging the importance of risk management in a climate that is almost impossible to predict. One overarching guideline from the board was that health and safety, not financial costs were to determine decisions. Based on the presidents’ reports, the board of trustees approved the following resolution.
With the health and safety of the University System’s students, faculty, employees, guests and surrounding communities and state of New Hampshire as the foremost consideration, the Board of Trustees has identified certain conditions required for opening an institution for on-campus educational programs.
Because some of the conditions are external to the institution and many involve factors subject to rapid and unpredictable change, the Presidents will provide an initial report and regular and frequent updates to the Board on the status of and changes in each of the conditions. The Presidents will immediately report to Board leadership all developments of concern and plan alterations that arise between updates, erring on the side of reporting when in doubt.
