Stanford University is requiring graduate students to sign a “Campus Compact” that prohibits them from participating in indoor events, having guests in university housing either on- or off-campus, or traveling outside northern California without quarantining.
“We are writing with information regarding one important way we are asking you to participate in making campus as safe as possible during the upcoming academic year,” reads the letter to students from Vice Provost for Student Affairs Susie Brubaker-Cole and Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs Stacey Bent.
The letter goes on, “We have an individual and collective responsibility to protect ourselves and all members of the Stanford community — including custodial, dining, instructional, and residential employees whose work requires them to be on campus. It is critical that we all commit to preventative measures such as face coverings, COVID testing, and physical distancing.”
Among the other things students are required to agree to, they must undergo the school’s COVID-19 training, screen themselves daily for the virus, receive the seasonal flu vaccine, wash their hands frequently, and wear masks outside.
Students must also “refrain from having any guests (including fellow students) in my apartment or in common areas of my apartment building, per California state orders, other than a necessary childcare worker instructed to practice prevention guidelines.” The statement defines a “guest” as “anyone who does not live full-time in my apartment.”
Regarding travel, the compact says: “Individuals who have traveled outside of Northern California are restricted from returning to Stanford campuses for 14-days — unless they receive testing at, or after, day 5 post-return and receive a negative result.”
Students are urged to “understand that alleged violations of this Compact will generally be reviewed by a Compact Review Panel but acknowledge that the University retains the right to remove any person from housing or the campus to protect the health and safety of the community.”
Explaining how the Compact Review Panel will take several factors into account in deciding how to appropriately dispense punishment to violators, students are warned that “the Panel may impose a range of consequences, including issuing a warning, requiring additional training, restricting access to Stanford facilities or removal from campus, including housing.”
“Decisions of the Panel are final,” the compact adds, warning that any violations could “also be grounds for referral to other applicable University processes.”
Stanford is not the only university to take stringent measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus among students.
According to The Associated Press, many colleges are grappling with how best to handle the pandemic, with many choosing to shutter temporarily. Notre Dame and Michigan State universities moved their classes online this week. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill also moved online and helped students who wanted to move off-campus after a cluster of COVID-19 broke out on campus.
The Washington Free Beacon reported that Albion College in Albion, Michigan, is requiring students to download a phone app that will digitally track their private health data and their location at all times.
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