Dear students, faculty and staff,

With the number of cases of COVID-19 (coronavirus) growing in the United States and new cases reported over the weekend in Rhode Island, I am writing to you to discuss the steps the University has been taking to ensure the health and safety of all community members.

At the moment, there are no reported cases of COVID-19 at URI. Information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that at this time, most people in the United States will have little immediate risk of exposure to this virus. The CDC says this virus is NOT currently spreading widely in the United States. We also continue to work closely with the Rhode Island Department of Health on this issue.

In addition, we have established a dedicated website where you can read all of the updates we have distributed to our community. Most of these messages list the steps that community members can take to avoid coming down with the flu and COVID-19.

Our community should also remember that seasonal influenza is widespread on campus, in the state and around the country. The preventive measures for COVID-19, flu and flu-like symptoms are the same.

To help keep yourself and your family healthy, the CDC recommends the following:

• Wash your hands often with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and warm water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand gel.
• Sneeze and cough into your elbow or cover your mouth and nose with a tissue.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick. If you are sick, stay home from work, school.
• Do not share utensils, water bottles, or other personal items. Many germs that cause viral illness are spread through saliva.
• Wipe down common items like phones, keyboards, remote controls, door knobs, and railings with a disinfectant.

Given the intense media coverage of the illness, I want to assure you that your well being is our top concern. Led by teams from Health Services and Emergency Management, every administrative unit at URI has been involved in preparing for and responding to this global outbreak.

Starting in mid-January, we convened a team made up of leaders from Health Services, Emergency Management, the Division of Student Affairs, the Division of Academic Affairs and Office of the Provost, the Division of Administration and Finance, the International Center and Communications to address all aspects of this issue.

In January, our first priority was to get seven of our students home safely from China. They all arrived back home and have remained healthy.

Since then, we have been communicating frequently with our students, faculty and staff through electronic community notices. We maintain direct communication with our study-abroad-students, and are now helping those in Italy to return home. We are asking that these students upon return to the United States, go directly home for a period of time and do not come directly to campus. The provost’s office is working closely with these students to help them complete their academic requirements, and Health Services will continue to remotely monitor their health status while they re-adjust at home.

We continue to monitor events as they unfold here in Rhode Island, across the country and around the world and will keep you updated on the University’s actions through email, the website and other communication vehicles as this situation develops. Thank you for working together to help our students and our entire community remain healthy.

David M. Dooley