COVID-19 Testing Requirements and an Update on Travel

COVID-19 Testing Requirements

Questions about testing have been coming up- We’ve gotten clarification from the Provost’s office by way of communication from the College:

• All graduate students will need to be tested as a part of the ‘return to campus’ testing requirement, even if they have been on campus over the summer.  If they are registered for classes, they will be getting an email with a link to set up an appointment. After attempting to do so, if they are informed that they are ineligible for the test, please let Dalane know asap.  Sara and Dalane have contacted the students with more details.
• Testing for all non-students, i.e., faculty, postdocs, staff, will begin the week of Aug. 24.  This will be a part of the random testing of ~10,000/wk people across the IU system, of which ~5,000/wk will be on Bloomington campus.

Update on travel

The ban on university-affiliated international travel will remain in place for the fall 2020 semester. Further, from Vice President for International Affairs:

…we recognize international engagement as a core dimension of research, teaching, and service at IU. In particular, we recognize that for some individuals, international travel may be essential to their research, their academic progress, or their fulfillment of core job responsibilities. Therefore, an exception process will be created to consider requests for approval of essential international travel by faculty members, graduate students, and staff. It is unlikely that many IU students, faculty, or staff will seek to or be able to travel internationally during the fall 2020 semester, and so we expect requests for such exceptions to be rare.

The review committee responsible for implementing this exception process will consider the following factors:

• The essential nature of the proposed travel (i.e., importance to the relevant research agenda or course of study; inability to postpone or pursue remote options or other alternatives);
• Prevailing health conditions in the country of destination, with respect both to COVID-19 transmission rates and the availability of adequate health infrastructure;
• The absence of any entry bans or mandatory quarantines in the destination country that would render the proposed travel impracticable; and
• The feasibility of the proposed travel (e.g., flight availability; ability to re-enter the U.S.; access to necessary resources and facilities at the destination).

All applications for exception must be accompanied by approval from the relevant dean or unit head. Please submit applications to the Office of the Vice President for International Affairs at ovpia@iu.edu. All travelers returning to IU from foreign destinations are advised to follow the CDC's guidance for returning travelers.