June 25, 2020 To William Paterson Faculty and Staff: Now that summer has officially begun, I hope everyone is finding time to get out and enjoy some fresh air and sunshine. The first phase of our return to campus continues. All employees who have been identified as critical to preparing for the start of the Fall semester on campus have already been contacted by their Vice Presidents or supervisors. They will soon receive an email from Human Resources with additional information on the steps that have been taken by the Re-Opening Preparedness Committee to ready the campus for their safe return. In addition to the thorough cleaning and sanitization of all work areas, these steps include modifications to office layouts, installation of plexiglass barriers, where appropriate, equipping offices with cleaning supplies, and providing individual employees with disposable masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer. This first group of critical employees will begin returning to campus over the course of next week. When they do, they will find that the COVID-19 testing site, which Passaic County had been running on our campus, is no longer operating. The rest of us will continue to work remotely until at least next Thursday, July 2, when I will communicate with you again on these matters, including our planned start date for the Fall semester. Meanwhile, we have received additional re-opening guidance from the State and are in the process of preparing detailed re-opening plans, which we will submit to the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education. Before we do that, however, we will share with you the most current information and take your questions during a series of three online town halls: Provost Josh Powers will host a town hall on operational plans for academic affairs; Vice President for Student Development Miki Cammarata will host a session on our residence life plans; and Vice President for Human Resources Allison Boucher-Jarvis will host a session on employee issues related to the return to campus. Re-Opening Preparedness Committee Co-Chairs Dr. Jill Guzman and Director Charles Lowe will be on hand for all three sessions. Keep an eye out for email invitations to these events. Thank you for your continued good work under these challenging circumstances, and take care. Sincerely, Richard J. Helldobler, PhD President
