College Research Restart

These guidelines are applicable primarily to researchers in the core College. The College schools of the Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture and Design, the Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, and the Media School will have their own plans.

This page outlines the steps and conditions necessary to support a full return of research/creative activity in the College of Arts and Sciences by July 1. It is important to note that it is in addition to and in support of the Guidelines for Resumption of Research at Indiana University and the Bloomington Campus Research Restart Recommendations. To understand and enact the research restart plan on the school, area, and individual lab/studio/office level, it is essential that you read the above documents before following the steps outlined below. These plans contain many of the guidelines and protocols that we are expected to follow and are therefore not included here. Additional conditions on the restart of research introduced in Department-level plans must be observed.

The university requires the approval of research restart plans in the case of shared work spaces as defined below, stating approval “by a dean, or department chair if delegated by the dean, is required to return to on-campus research.” The core College is delegating this approval to department chairs following the procedure described below.

Research that can be conducted remotely, should continue to be for the foreseeable future. Similarly, parts of research that can be conducted remotely (e.g., writing, literature research, analysis of results and data, team meetings, presentations), even if connected with research that requires facilities or equipment on campus, should be conducted remotely when possible.

Note that discussion groups, symposia, and conferences with invited guests do fall under the category that they can be held virtually and should continue virtually until further notice.

Finally, given the diversity of what comprises research and creative activity in the College, this document will invariably not cover every situation. Please address questions to Associate Dean for Research Nicola Pohl at colladnm@indiana.edu with a cc: to collco19@indiana.edu.

CONDITIONS

Prior to a full returning to research/creative activity spaces on campus by College faculty, graduate students, and staff, they must take the following steps:

As mandated in the Bloomington Campus Research Restart Recommendations, all individuals working on campus must complete the NIH COVID-19 Response Training certificate course at https://niehstraining.vividlms.com/ as well as review the guidelines from the CDC.
Please email a copy of your NIH training completion certificate from the above to your PI/supervisor, department chair, and relevant center or program director, copied to Associate Dean Nicola Pohl at colladnm@indiana.edu .
All individuals working on campus must complete the Community Responsibility Acknowledgment Form available through https://one.iu.edu. If research/creativity starts before this form is available, the alternative form at the end of this document starting on page 5 must be signed and sent to collco19@indiana.edu.
For faculty, graduate students, and others who only plan to use their private offices within their unit for research and creative activity or relevant resources outside the College (e.g., IU Library facilities) when these are ready for use, please notify your department chair and center or program director (if relevant) via email of your plan.
Research restart plans for other spaces with multiple users needing to share equipment/resources (such as reading rooms, core facilities, manuscript rooms) and individual office/lab/studio plans must be emailed (or following department guidelines) to department chairs/program/center directors for their approval. The department chairs/program/center directors will then upload the approved plans to the College Research Restart Box folder. Department chairs or program directors will submit research plans for their own work to Associate Dean Nicola Pohl at colladnm@indiana.edu. More information is below regarding who is responsible for given research spaces and activities as well as the need to complete the Return to On-Campus Research Form.

DEFINING SPACES

There are three levels of research/creative activity spaces covered in this document:

Building-level spaces including communal/shared spaces like hallways, bathrooms, common seating areas, conference rooms, mail rooms, shared administrative offices, graduate student offices/spaces not associated with a single lead PI, etc.
Shared work spaces that house equipment or other research/creativity activity resources used by multiple people – like shops, shared computing facilities, performance spaces, clinical spaces, research group labs/work areas, core facilities, etc.
Individual offices, studios, labs spaces – normally occupied by a sole individual.

RESTART PLANS

Plans for building-level spaces: a. Buildings containing only one or two departments will be handled by the department chair(s) in collaboration with the relevant building manager.
1. Conference room, common seating areas, etc., used by multiple researchers or research groups in a single department will be handled by the chair of that department in collaboration with the researchers and research groups.
2. Common space used by multiple departments in buildings containing multiple departments/centers will be handled by the Chair of that building’s Space Committee in collaboration with the relevant building manager.
3. For any other questions or situations, contact Andy Bolling jambolli@indiana.edu.
Plans for shared work spaces: The supervisor, director, or lead PI in charge of that space must submit a restart plan to their department chair and relevant center director for their approval(s) prior to the Chair/Director’s uploading of the approved plan to the College Box folder. No work can start until the plan is approved in writing. Department chairs will submit plans for their own work to Associate Dean Nicola Pohl at colladnm@indiana.edu. Once you receive approval, please complete the university-wide Return to On-Campus Research Form.
Plans for individual offices, studios, labs spaces: No formal plan is required beyond notification of space usage to the department chair and relevant center or program director of your circumstances.
Plans for field work off-campus should follow the protocols outlined in the appendix of the Bloomington Campus Research Restart Recommendations and following the College procedure for shared work spaces.

Plans should address the following based on the Bloomington Campus Research Restart Recommendations:

PPE requirements & needs
Sanitizing and disinfecting requirements & needs
Social distancing requirements and how they will be met through reorganization of spaces and equipment and/or through shift scheduling, etc.
Travel plans (personal or work-related)
Traffic flow and room occupancy limits
Any other planning specific to the space, equipment, and/or individuals working there.
A list of spaces including building name and room numbers under your oversight and occupancy limits for each.
Shared studio and research spaces must have appropriate signage and space delineation/soft barriers in place as needed.
All research/creative spaces must have appropriate disinfectant, hand sanitizer/hand-washing facilities, and PPE (when necessary) in place.

PHASES/TIMELINE

As per the Bloomington Campus Restart Plan:

“Access to research/creative activity space on June 1 should be given to building managers, center/facility directors with required staff, research group representatives staging for the restart, and those with specific grant or degree deadlines that have demonstrated plans for compliance with CDC guidelines for COVID-19 function.” Reopening of research/creative activity in the College will be done in three phases with the goal of having all appropriate research/creative activity spaces open to faculty, postdoctoral scholars, staff, and graduate students by July 1.

Preparation phase - used to meet the above conditions (June 1)
Reopening of individual and shared studios/spaces/labs (June 8)
All approved personnel may return to campus for work that cannot be done remotely (tentatively July 1)

Compliance with these guidelines is covered in the “Enforcement” section of the Guidelines for Resumption of Research at Indiana University.

This timeline or the guidelines in this document may be revised as new information becomes available or a resurgence in the pandemic requires changes or a suspension of research activities.

PRINCIPLES/AGREEMENT

Only if your research/creative activity starts before the Community Responsibility Acknowledgment Form becomes available through https://one.iu.edu, please sign the College Restart Guidelines PDF and email to collco19@indiana.edu.

Everyone in the IU College of Arts and Sciences who plans to resume research/creative activity in individual or shared spaces or offices and those supporting this work must agree to abide by, uphold, and act as a leader in modelling the following principles:

Research that can be conducted remotely should be. Only come to campus to complete work that cannot be accomplished remotely.
High-risk personnel should stay home at this time. Anyone in high-risk categories as defined by the CDC should remain off campus at this time.
Maintain 6-foot physical separation between all individuals. In the rare cases in which this is not possible, those situations should be kept to the shortest time possible and surgical face masks should be worn.
Work together to dedensify research facilities to no more than one person per every 60 square feet. Steps to achieve this include limiting the number of people permitted in a facility at any one time, working in shifts, and scheduling shared facilities and equipment. Sometimes a density of no more than one person per every 60 square feet cannot be maintained. Those situations should be kept to the shortest time possible and surgical face masks should be used. Incidental encounters with other people (e.g., passing in a hallway) are unavoidable, but should be reduced whenever possible, for example, by not sharing passenger elevators and limiting the number of people in restrooms and other common areas.
Wear a cloth or similar face mask whenever the researcher is inside a university building or other research facility, except when alone in the researcher’s own private office or studio. The university will provide all researchers needing to work on campus with two reusable cloth masks. Researchers should have a mask with them at all times when on campus. Researchers are responsible for laundering their own masks.
Use appropriate PPE whenever required by the nature of the activity
Cleanse research equipment and high-touch surfaces in shared spaces. Shared equipment should be cleaned by each user, using appropriate disinfecting cleaning material provided by the university, both before use begins and after it is completed. Similarly, researchers should frequently clean “high-touch” surfaces (e.g., door handles, drawer handles, faucets, etc.) in shared spaces. The university will increase regular cleaning of common areas, but not scientific or other specialized equipment.
Maintain good personal hygiene. This includes washing hands for at least 20 seconds with soap (which the university will provide) regularly throughout the day and upon entering and before exiting all buildings, using hand sanitizer (which the university will provide) when hand-washing facilities are unavailable, and covering coughs and sneezes. Ensure symptomatic colleagues stay or return home as soon as symptoms develop. (e.g., fever, cough, difficulty breathing)
Comply with the university’s policies on COVID 19 symptom checking, testing, tracing, and quarantining. Comply with the university’s policy on checking for symptoms of COVID-19, testing for COVID-19, tracing people who may have been exposed to COVID-19, and quarantining people who test positive for COVID-19 or who are likely to have been exposed to it, as described by the Restart Committee.
Participate in a “buddy” safety system. Participate in a “buddy” safety system so that any person working alone in a research facility in which dangerous chemicals, equipment, or other material are used has an identified “buddy” working elsewhere in the building or who is in contact electronically and is aware of the researcher’s presence in the facility.
For fieldwork and other research conducted on off-campus facilities, comply with all relevant policies and guidelines. For field work and other research conducted in facilities under the control of an entity other than IU, researchers must comply with the policies of that third party and with applicable law in that jurisdiction, in addition to these guidelines.
Engage in cleaning/sanitizing of personal work spaces twice daily, once prior to starting work and again when work is completed.
Clean shared equipment twice per use; once before using and again after using.
Stay home if you feel sick. COVID-19 symptoms should be reported to the PI. Researchers should take their temperature each day before coming to lab. If you have come into contact with an infected person, you should not come in and call IU Health for guidance on testing and/or quarantining.
Follow all room occupancy limits including in bathrooms, elevators, and small communal work spaces.
Follow and comply with any new or updated federal, state, local, University, or School guidelines when announced to maintain the health and safety of our community.