Dear On-campus and Off-campus Undergraduate Students,

We are writing to thank you for your continued great work in keeping Brown healthy and safe. As of this writing the seven day positivity rate for students is zero percent. That is a testament to your commitment to mask wearing, hand washing, social distancing, and getting tested twice a week. We know it is not easy and we are grateful for everything each of you are doing every day.

Our success to date is not, however, a reason to relax our collective or individual efforts. A clear lesson from the opening of the academic year across the country is that a few seemingly small choices by individuals can very quickly have negative impacts on hundreds and thousands of people. Nearby Providence College announced yesterday a shift to remote instruction and stay-at-home orders for all students for a period of time due to a marked increase in positive test results among off-campus students. We owe it to each other – and especially to the staff who are caring for and providing food to students and our neighbors on College Hill and throughout Providence – to prevent the same from happening at Brown.

This weekend is a critical point in the semester with some students having completed the first Quiet Period and others who are moving into residence halls today through Sunday, beginning the second Quiet Period. It is essential that Phase One on-campus students and Phase Two on-campus students do not interact with each other, and off-campus students cannot enter the residence halls at any time. Phase Two students must follow all the Quiet Period guidance you will receive in a separate letter from Dean Bakkegard and Dr. Britto. For all other students, a few key points:

• Wear your masks, wash your hands frequently, maintain social distancing and be certain to continue getting your COVID-19 test twice a week.
• If you feel sick, stay in your room or your apartment and contact Health Services at 401-863-3953.
• Avoid commercial establishments except for essentials like take-out food, groceries and medicine. Do not go to bars or indoor dining.
• Unless you are in the second Quiet Period, get outside as much as possible, exercise and enjoy the campus but do so safely with masks and social distancing. Stay in your pods or household, minimize and track your contacts with others, and do not attend or host social gatherings of more than five people.
• A special note to off-campus students: All of the requirements apply to you the same as on-campus students, including limiting social gatherings to no more than five people. On many campuses across the country, the spread of COVID-19 has been traced to off-campus parties and events. We have seen very little of that risky behavior at Brown, and we implore you to continue being safe. Over the coming weeks, we anticipate that more activities and events will take place on campus, but that will not mean free rein to do what you want off-campus. Our ability to carry out the semester safely, and especially to resume in-person undergraduate classes on Oct. 5, depends on the choices we all make now and will continue to make in the coming weeks.

Thank you again for all your good efforts.

Sincerely,

Eric Estes, Vice President for Campus Life