COVID-19 Guidelines

All members of the Saint Mary’s student and employee community who are up-to-date on their vaccinations can remove their masks indoors if comfortable doing so, including in classrooms, with the following exceptions: 

• Unvaccinated or Not Up-To-Date with Vaccines. Any individual who is unvaccinated, or is eligible to receive a booster but has not done so, should continue to mask indoors at all times. For students, this includes private residence hall rooms that are not yours.
• Recent Close Contact or Isolation. Following CDC recommendations, you are required to wear a mask indoors when around others due to a close contact, or recent release from quarantine or isolation. 
• Private Offices and Classrooms. We ask that all members of our community mask in offices, classrooms and spaces where use of a mask is requested. Employees of the College are encouraged to complete reports on students who are not following masking requirements in offices or individual classrooms, and violations could result in Student Conduct referral. 
• Performances, Lectures and Events. Some performances, lectures, or events might require masks. Be prepared to wear a mask if the individual event requires them.
• As Requested. Be prepared to mask when asked.

In addition to following Saint Mary’s masking requirements, athletes will follow NCAA and/or MIAA masking guidelines.

All students and employees of Saint Mary’s are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 before enrolling or beginning employment. Exemptions must be approved prior to enrollment or employment. Information on the exemption process before enrollment can be found here.

Yes.

According to the CDC, you are considered up-to-date with the COVID-19 vaccine if you have received your initial vaccination series and a booster. In addition, students are strongly encouraged to receive a bivalent booster, if they have not already, but it is not required by Saint Mary's. Testing and masking protocols, among others, are different for individuals who are not up-to-date with the COVID-19 vaccine. 

It is clear that our ability to remain together for in-person instruction depends on suppressing the spread of COVID-19 in our community and avoiding serious illness, hospitalization, and death for those that do become infected. Because we are a congregate-living residential community, we must take every step available to prevent this highly infectious disease. The broad immunization of our campus community is critical to achieving this goal.

Students, to document your vaccination, please upload your information to the medical records system, Medicat.   

Undergraduate and graduate students attending classes on campus may request vaccine-specific verified medical exemptions for individual vaccines, including COVID. A general vaccination exemption from all vaccine requirements for religious reasons can be requested. Information on how to request an exemption can be found here.

The University of Notre Dame is requiring all students enrolled in courses, active in student organizations, or in band to provide proof of having a COVID-19 vaccine. That includes Saint Mary’s students. Notre Dame will honor exemptions to the vaccine approved by Saint Mary’s. 

No. The process of contact tracing is explained to the student who has been diagnosed with COVID-19, including instructions on who is a close contact and what steps their close contacts need to take. It is the responsibility of each individual to protect our community by promptly notifying others that could be affected. The Health and Counseling Center team will notify Academic Advising of the length of time the student is expected to be away from class, without identifying the reason.

DNP and Data Science graduate programs are the only fully online programs. 

NCAA-required screening tests of student athletes is on-going. No additional screening testing is currently taking place. In case of a significant outbreak, or a change in the county or local levels of transmission, the College reserves the right to return to required screening testing. Students who present with COVID symptoms will continue to be tested by the Health and Counseling Center team.

Our campus is open to visitors, who are asked to honor the College's and local health officials guidelines.

The College welcomes visitors to campus. Visitors are not required to wear a mask unless they are visiting an office, classroom or space where masks are requested, if they are a recent close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, or after recent release from an isolation period that requires masking.

Residence Halls are open to all visitors. Residence Hall visitors should follow the same masking protocols outlined above, and should wear masks if they are visiting an office, classroom or space where masks are requested, if they are a recent close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, or after recent release from an isolation period that requires masking. Visitor hours are Sunday to Thursday, 10 a.m. – midnight, Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. – 2 a.m. Visitors are prohibited in rooms where students are completing an isolation period.

Beginning with the fall 2022 semester, students will no longer complete isolation in the south wing of Regina Hall. Residential students whose primary home is within 300 miles, who test positive are encouraged to move home within 24 hours to complete their isolation period. Students who remain on campus will complete their isolation period in place in their residence halls. Students completing isolation in residence halls who have roommates are required to mask at all times while in their room, when their roommates are present. See the guidelines on isolation above for further details.

Regardless of vaccination status, a student with a positive COVID test, will need to remain in isolation for a minimum of 5 days following the onset of symptoms, or a positive COVID test if asymptomatic. The Health and Counseling Center team will inform Academic Advising that you will be away from class without releasing the reason, and Academic Advising will in turn notify your professors. As with all excused absences, it is your responsibility to contact your faculty and work with them to plan how you can stay on track in your courses during your absences. Each faculty member will have a policy in the course syllabus that will guide how they approach working with you during your absence.

If a student with a positive test has symptoms that do not resolve after 5 full days in isolation, then isolation continues until symptoms improve and the student or employee is free of fever, without fever reducing medications, for 24 hours.

Students who tested positive for COVID-19 but were asymptomatic develop symptoms while in isolation, their isolation period starts over. Day 0 will be the day symptoms start, and they will need to isolate for 5 full days.

Whether isolating at home or on campus, students will be released from isolation by the Health and Counseling team after assessment.

Students whose primary residence is further than 300 miles from the College, and who are in isolation on campus, and whose release date extends past the end of the semester, might be allowed to remain on campus to complete their isolation until their release date in some instances. They might be required, however, to move to a different room to complete the isolation period and could incur additional housing charges.

As Campus Dining is closed during breaks, and all meal plans have ended for the semester, students on campus past the date of move-out will be responsible for ordering and paying for all meals from local dining establishments. They should coordinate delivery with the Campus Safety team. A daily check in will also occur via phone.