The following message was sent via email to all UConn students, faculty, and staff:
To the UConn Community:
This message outlines UConn's overall approach to COVID-19 testing in advance of the beginning of the fall semester and reentry. Additional messages to specific populations will follow, offering more detailed information and/or instructions.
Our approach to testing for our community is straightforward: if a student or employee is coming to our campuses because they have to be there, they should be tested. This includes faculty, staff, and commuter students on every campus, both graduate and undergraduate. There is not a "once-size-fits all" approach to accomplishing this, so the university will utilize different avenues and strategies.
We will not be testing faculty, staff, and students who are not coming to campus this fall. This includes students who are online only and not living in a residence hall, faculty who are teaching only online courses, and staff who are telecommuting, which is a substantial segment of our population.
Residential Students
As you already know, all residential UConn students will be returning to our campuses approximately two weeks before the first day of classes to be tested and quarantined on campus. This is the segment of our population that is largely self-contained on campus, while others arrive and depart on a regular basis. We are arranging for testing of our residential students during check-in.
Commuter Students Coming to Campus
Testing will be addressed for commuter students registered for in-person instruction, both graduate and undergraduate, in several ways. First, these students are encouraged to submit proof of a negative test result obtained within 14 days of the start of the fall semester (Aug 31). For those students who do not obtain a test on their own, the University will provide testing. The University is currently exploring several options for testing and specific information on these testing options will be available on the SHaW website by August 1.
