Spring 2023 Plan

The COVID-19 guidelines were developed in conjunction with other university officials across the state, public health officials from the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control (S.C. DHEC) as well as at the direction of the South Carolina General Assembly. The College of Charleston’s plan is in alignment with state law and other university plans across the state and also much of the country.

In preparation for the upcoming 2022-23 academic year, the College of Charleston has established the COVID-19 protocols outlined below. These guidelines are intended to minimize the spread of the virus in our community while at the same time allow us to continue providing exceptional academic and campus life experiences for our students.

Due to the increased availability of vaccines, treatments and rapid testing, South Carolina, along with other states and the federal government, has begun treating COVID-19 as an endemic virus. This designation means that the disease is circulating at an expected or normal level, minus an occasional outbreak.

As you make plans to return to campus, please be aware of the recommendations that were communicated to the campus community.

If you have questions about the College’s COVID-19 protocols please email covid19@cofc.edu.  

VACCINATIONS    

• In accordance with guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), the College strongly recommends that its students, faculty and staff receive the COVID-19 vaccine.  
• CDC recommends COVID-19 primary series vaccines for everyone ages 6 months and older and COVID-19 boosters for everyone ages 5 years and older, if eligible.  
  • Visit the CDC webiste to check whether you are current with your COVID vaccine. 

• COVID-19 vaccination is not required for any student to enroll or any employee to work at the College of Charleston. 

FACE-COVERINGS/MASKS  

• Masks are not currently required on campus unless one of the following applies: 
  • You are on days 1-5 of isolation and have not yet left campus. 
  • You are on days 6-10 of your isolation and have returned to campus. 

• Those who are not vaccinated and/or those who wish to continue to wear high-quality, well-fitted masks such as a KN95 are encouraged to do so, especially in large indoor gatherings. 
• The College has KN95 masks available for students, faculty and staff. N-95 face masks are available for free at several campus locations

IN THE CLASSROOM  

• Classrooms and course sections will be filled to the regular (fire-code) capacity of the room. Please note that hand sanitizer stations will be at building entrances and hand wipes at the classrooms.

MEETINGS/GATHERINGS  

• Non-academic gatherings are currently not subject to attendance restrictions. 
• Please direct anyone who wishes to self-report a positive case to the self-report buttons at the top of the Back on the Bricks website. 

RETURN-TO-CAMPUS COVID-19 TESTING 

• The College of Charleston does not require return-to-campus testing.  
• All students, faculty and staff are encouraged to self-test for COVID-19 prior to move-in, prior to the start of classes and at any time they have symptoms consistent with COVID-19. 
• Anyone testing positive for COVID-19 is expected to complete isolation away from campus, per CDC guidance. 

COVID-19 TESTING OPTIONS 

• The College of Charleston does not currently plan to offer large-scale COVID-19 testing programs for asymptomatic campus community members during the 2022-23 academic year.  
• Members of the campus community are strongly encouraged to monitor themselves for COVID-19 symptoms. If symptoms occur, individuals should isolate immediately, seek testing promptly, continue to isolate if the test is positive and follow CDC Isolation Guidance. 
• All campus community members are strongly encouraged to stock up on at-home COVID-19 self-tests. Students living on campus should obtain these kits prior to arrival on campus. Order free tests at COVIDtests.gov. Free tests are also available through local health departments. 
• All currently enrolled students who are symptomatic for COVID-19 may be tested at Student Health Services. 
• The College plans to make self-test kits available throughout the fall semester to all faculty, staff and students. More details regarding the distribution of these tests will be announced closer to the start of the fall semester. In the meantime, staff and faculty can continue obtaining at-home self-test kits through the Office of Human Resources. 

ISOLATION  

• The College of Charleston does not have dedicated isolation spaces available on campus during the 2022-2023 academic year to house residential students who require isolation. If they become positive, students living in CofC-sponsored housing should plan to leave campus for 5 days or, if leaving campus is not an option, enact isolation-in-place protocol.
• All students should create a COVID-19 plan with their roommates outlining what they will do if someone becomes COVID-19-positive in their living space. 
• Any individuals who test positive must isolate away from others for at least five days, regardless of vaccination status.CDC officials advise that individuals can end their isolation, if after five days they are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medication and symptoms are improving. They are required to wear a high-quality mask such as a KN95 through day 10.
• Anyone who has had close contact with a positive case should wear a high-quality mask such as a KN95 for 10 days and should get tested after five days. 
• All campus community members must self-report their positive tests using the self-report form located at the top of the Back on the Bricks website. 
• Check out the College's isolation guidelines.

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON–SPONSORED TRAVEL  

• For faculty and staff, College-sponsored domestic travel is permitted. For College-sponsored international travel, faculty and staff should work with their division/department heads.  
• The CDC strongly recommends that individuals who plan to travel be fully up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccines. 

The College of Charleston has a voluntary face mask policy. This means that face masks will no longer be required in instructional spaces such as classrooms, labs and libraries.

Individuals who test positive are required to wear a high-quality mask such as a KN95 for at least 10 days when around others at home and in public.

The College of Charleston has no available space during the 2022-2023 academic year to house residential students who require isolation.

All campus community members must self-report their positive tests using the self-report form located at the top of the Back on the Bricks website. 

• All students and employees who test positive are responsible for notifying their close contacts about their exposure. 

All students positive for COVID-19 living in CofC-sponsored housing should make a plan with their families to leave campus immediately during their first five days of isolation. If all options to leave campus have been exhausted, students should create a plan with roommates to isolate in place.

Students who need to isolate in place should create a plan with their roommates outlining what they will do. 

• Talk about how you will isolate-in-place. Uninfected roommates may need to move into a common space, so that the roommate with COVID-19 can isolate in a room alone.​
• Plan for how shared bathrooms will be cleaned between uses.​
• Discuss that shared areas will not be occupied by any roommates with COVID-19 during their isolation period.
• ​Plan for roommates who have COVID-19 to isolate together, away from roommates who have not tested positive.
• ​Plan with your roommates or other friends for how you will get meals, go to the pharmacy or get any supplies if you are in isolation or quarantine. Students in isolation or quarantine may briefly leave their residence while wearing a KN95 mask and social distancing to pick up meals or other necessities.

Students who are required to isolate need to communicate with their faculty members. The student and faculty member will decide how to best have the student engage with the class. In some instances, they will be able to attend remotely but if that is not possible, faculty members will work with their students to make certain that they can keep up with their assignments.

Most classes will be offered in person and are available depending upon demand, but if you enroll in an in-person class, you must attend in person. If you are enrolled in an in-person class, but decide you want it online, you will need to switch classes (from an in-person to online) before the drop/add deadline for full semester classes. For questions about class availability, contact the respective department chair/program director for options.

COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON–SPONSORED TRAVEL  

• For faculty and staff, College-sponsored domestic travel is permitted. For College-sponsored international travel, faculty and staff should work with their division/department heads.  
• The CDC strongly recommends that individuals who plan to travel be fully up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccines. 

For College-sponsored international travel for faculty and staff (see U.S. State Department Travel Advisories):

Travel to countries with U.S. State Department travel advisories of Levels 1 & 2:

Travel Authorizations (TAs) will be considered through the current, regular review process, but must be accompanied by a separate explanation of support by the dean that acknowledges COVID-19 travel restrictions and protocols for the traveler in question. TAs should also include possible additional costs (charged to same index as the other travel expenses) that may be incurred due to aforementioned restrictions and protocols. The complete TA and accompanying explanations should be sent directly to the Controller’s Office.

Travel to countries with U.S. State Department travel advisories of Levels 3 & 4:

The TA must be accompanied by separate explanations of support by the dean and chair that acknowledge COVID-19 travel restrictions and protocols for the traveler in question. The TA should also include possible additional costs (charged to same index as the other travel expenses) that may be incurred due to the aforementioned restrictions and protocols.The complete TA and accompanying explanations will be reviewed by committee. Please send to delmastromp@cofc.edu.

For those employees traveling for work, the CDC strongly recommends being vaccinated.

Guests from foreign countries (all travel advisory levels):

TAs will be considered through the current, regular review process but must be accompanied by separate justifications from the chair and dean that acknowledge COVID-19 travel restrictions and protocols for the traveler in question. TAs should also include possible additional costs (charged to same index as the other travel expenses) that may be incurred due to the aforementioned restrictions and protocols. A COVID-19 release form will be required for each guest.The complete TA and accompanying justifications should be sent directly to the Controller’s Office.

Yes. Classes and course sections will be filled to the fire-code, regular capacity of the room.