Important Update: COVID Testing Next Week for Students Attending in-Person Classes
Dear Lewis & Clark Students:
Forty percent of individuals infected with COVID are asymptomatic. That means you could be infected, spreading the disease, and never even know it. Fifty percent of disease transmission is thought to occur before the onset of symptoms.
Because your health and safety are the priorities of the College, all undergraduate students studying on campus in Portland (with a few exceptions noted below) are expected to participate in the Health Service COVID-19 Testing Clinic next week. The goal of the clinic is to identify any asymptomatic cases of COVID among students, to guide those students into a supported isolation experience, and to limit any potential spread of disease within our community. All testing for asymptomatic students that is conducted between August 31 and September 4 is being offered at no cost to students.
The students who are exempted from this requirement are the following groups:
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Student athletes tested in the Health Service since arriving on campus;
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Other students who have been tested on-campus since August 24;
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Any individual who has tested positive for COVID since June 1;
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Any individual who currently has any symptom of COVID. (These individuals should call the Health Service at 503-768-7165 for a telehealth consultation.);
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Any student currently quarantining based on being a close contact of someone with COVID.
If you fall into categories 3, 4, or 5 above, you must contact Melissa Osmond, Associate Director for Health Promotion, at mosmond@lclark.edu or 503-768-7112 to alert her of your circumstances so that you can be excused from testing in this clinic. Melissa will keep confidential any personal health information disclosed to her.
The clinic will be housed in the tents just outside the Templeton Health Service. All students will be expected to maintain a six-foot distance from other students and staff at all times. The clinic will operate from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. from Monday, August 31 through Friday, September 4. Students can come anytime during the testing period on their assigned day. We encourage you to come at a time that does not conflict with your academic schedule. However, we will be asking faculty to be flexible with their attendance policies on your assigned testing day. Assigned testing days are as follows:
The testing that will be done is a PCR saliva test. Students should familiarize themselves with this procedure prior to their test date by reading this testing consent form and the fact sheet. (Students must bring their own pen with them on the testing date to sign the consent form.) It is an institutional expectation that all students participate in surveillance testing this semester. If a student refuses to participate in this testing, they will not be allowed to attend in-person classes this fall. If you wish to make this choice, please contact me directly at hancock@lclark.edu.
The Health Service should know the results of testing about two business days after samples are collected. We expect that the vast majority of the student body will test negative. For that reason, we will only be notifying students of their results if students test positive. Should a student test positive, Wellness staff will notify public health officials, per Oregon law, reach out to ensure the student is supported into isolation, and collaborate with public health officials on contact tracing efforts. A positive test result may be disconcerting, but know that we will provide any student testing positive with support resources.
Testing results are confidential, and will remain secure within Wellness Services. However, the names of students who do not participate in the testing clinic will be provided to College officials for follow-up.
We have many students to test over the course of the week. We ask for your patience as our staff work to provide testing for all students. We fully believe this testing will support your health and safety this semester.
Should you anticipate the need for accommodation due to a disability, please email us as soon as possible at health@lclark.edu. Students with questions about this program or related expectations should e-mail covid19info@clark.edu.
Sincerely,
John Hancock, Ed.D.
Associate Dean of Students for Health and Wellness
