Dear Students,

In our communication last week about your Spring 2021 Location of Study Form, we noted that we would follow up soon to gather information about your plans for the end of the fall semester. This message contains important updates and provides details on some essential actions required of you, including many that are essential to our ability as a community to continue to promote health and safety and help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Please read this email carefully and note the various deadlines.

End of Fall Semester 

The fall semester will conclude with a remote reading week and remote final exams after Thanksgiving Break. The residence halls will close at 12 noon on Saturday, Dec. 12, after the conclusion of the remote final exam period. However, if you travel away from campus for Thanksgiving Break, you are not allowed to return to campus until move-in for the spring semester Jan. 9-12, 2021. 

Regardless of your departure timeline, you must maintain your current frequency of COVID-19 testing for as long as you are in the Providence area.

As you think about your departure date, it is important to help protect your health and the health of the home and community that you will travel to. We encourage you to reduce in-person contacts and practice strict social distancing and mask wearing for 14 days prior to your date of departure — especially if you plan to travel by airplane, train or bus. For example, if you plan to leave Providence before Thanksgiving, you should plan to reduce in-person contacts around Nov. 10. 

In addition, if you have not yet been vaccinated against the 2020-21 seasonal influenza virus, you should call Health Services at 401-863-3953 to schedule an appointment as soon as possible. We also encourage you to check with local boards of public health regarding travel restrictions that may be in place for your destination. Additional information on travel restrictions can be found on the CDC website. 

Departing Campus

All students who are leaving Providence between semesters will be paused from testing from the time of their departure until the time of return in January. By Friday, Nov. 13, please log into the MyBrown platform to enter the date when you plan to depart. You will be able to select from a date range; if you are not certain of your departure date, please select the latest likely date for your departure. As noted above you must maintain your current frequency of COVID-19 testing for as long as you are in the Providence area — any student who is in the Providence area while they have paused testing will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards.

If you have questions about testing or need to make changes after Nov. 13, email the Student Testing Call Center at studenttesting@brown.edu or call 401-863-6500. (Students cannot make changes to their testing between Dec. 18 and Jan. 4.) For additional resources, please consult the information on the Healthy Brown website, especially the information on the student testing page.

In addition, if you are departing campus before you receive confirmation of your spring housing assignment from Residential Life, you should fully vacate your room and return your key to the Key Office in Graduate Center E when you depart. 

Winter Break Housing and Meals

If you need to request an extension of housing and/or meal plan for Winter Break (Dec. 12 to Jan. 8), you will need to do so in MyBrown by Friday, Nov. 13. The Winter Break meal plan is $197 per week ($28 per day) or $759.86 for the full 27 days. Winter Break housing is $272 per week ($38 per day). Students who receive University scholarship may be eligible for support to cover some or all of these costs. You can request an evaluation for support for housing and a meal plan in the same form in MyBrown.

Students remaining on campus for Winter Break should be prepared to relocate to a temporary housing assignment for the break and/or new spring assignment. Not all students with on-campus housing who choose to remain on campus will retain their fall housing assignment.

Students who remain in Providence during Winter Break are required to continue to undergo COVID-19 testing with the same frequency. Students remaining in Providence over Winter Break must abide by University policies and should not travel outside of Providence. Students who must travel outside of Rhode Island for emergency or essential purposes must first check in with a dean in Student Support Services for guidance on the protocol for returning to campus. Students may also consult with a dean if they have any questions about staying on campus during Winter Break. 

Returning to Campus for Spring

Students who return to the Providence area for the spring semester will be required to agree to an updated Student Commitment to COVID-19 Community Health and Safety Requirements (Student Commitment) and to complete a new online educational module by Friday, Dec. 18, 2020. You will receive a follow-up email with further information and an individualized link.

The residence halls will reopen with a staggered move-in between Jan. 9 and  Jan. 12, 2021. Students living on campus will receive their spring housing assignment by early December and will select a time slot to move in on one of these days. You will then need to log into MyBrown by Sunday, Dec. 13, to enter the date range that matches your move-in date so that you can resume your testing upon arrival to campus. Students will again follow a Quiet Period from arrival until in-person classes begin on Wednesday, Jan. 27 (provided that the Campus Activity Status is at or above Level 2). 

In Closing

Thank you for your ongoing efforts to care for yourselves and others through this difficult time. Know that there are many resources and people who are here for you as you work through your various decisions and planning. Please consult this FAQs page for questions about the End of Semester Information form. You can also email spring2021@brown.edu or call 401-863-3500. For questions about testing, email the Student Testing Call Center at studenttesting@brown.edu or call 401-863-6500.

Best wishes for the final weeks of the semester. 

Sincerely,

Eric Estes
Vice President for Campus Life

Rashid Zia
Dean of the College