Coronavirus (COVID-19): Campus Response

The Minnesota Department of Health is making at-home saliva tests available to all Minnesotans and is urging those18-35 to get tested.

The saliva test checks whether you have COVID-19 right at the time you get tested and can spread it to others. It is not an antibody test that looks for whether you have had COVID-19 in the past, MDH says.

If you would like to get an at-home test, click the link here.

For more information about at-home testing, click here.

Visit the Minnesota Department of Health for other testing options.

Beginning back in March, Dunwoody began implementing new standards for a clean and healthy environment. These have included:

• Sealing the floors in areas of the buildings to make them impermeable and easy to disinfect, to prevent the spread of viruses.
• Using a new backpack unit to spray a commercial grade disinfectant in all areas of the buildings, including classrooms, offices, labs, common areas, and restrooms. This disinfects the air, which helps kill any airborne virus.
• Sanitizing surfaces by wiping down all areas of the building including computers, keyboards, desks, equipment, and elevator buttons on a daily basis. Frequently touched items in common areas are sanitized several times a day.

Dunwoody recognizes the unique challenges presented by delivering hands-on education in a COVID-19 environment. As such, College faculty, staff, deans, and managers have been preparing for a variety of scenarios to deliver Dunwoody’s curriculum in new and innovative ways.

Changes to Dunwoody’s labs, shops, and studios have been made to allow for safe, physically-distanced hands-on learning in small-group environments. These changes have included:

• Installing protective shields or barriers in areas of the building as needed, including in lab spaces.
• Investing in additional equipment and tools to reduce sharing between individuals.
• Creating take-home learning activities to allow for hands-on learning – from home.
• Installing touch-free handles at the doors of the West Entrance of the main building.
• Moving from group activities to individual learning in hands-on, lab settings.
• Determining traffic flow to maintain social distancing in hallways and common spaces.

To minimize the number of individuals on campus at any one time, Dunwoody is reworking its schedules to create smaller learning groups.

The College is leveraging its existing technology, including its Learning Management System, to deliver lectures, demonstrations, and one-on-one support, including tutoring, in online formats.

Health Screenings
All students, employees, and visitors to the Dunwoody campus will complete a thermal temperature check and affirm they are symptom free prior to entering the building.

Asking Everyone to Do Their Part

• Stay home if you are sick
• Wash your hands
• Cover your cough or sneeze
• Social distance
• Wear a mask

Guided by the Experts
Dunwoody’s guidelines, actions, and protocols all meet or exceed guidelines established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Minnesota Department of Health.

Here are the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC):

• People can help protect themselves from respiratory illness with everyday preventive actions.
  Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a cloth face cover when around others.

First, you should stay home.

Second, you should monitor yourself for the symptoms identified with COVID-19. That includes fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

Please contact your primary health care provider.

Students can use Talk One2One, which offers FREE, confidential 24/7 support for any problem that can be challenging their emotional health, well-being, or focus. The number is 1.800.756.3124. No issue is too big or too small.

Employees can call our Employee Assistance Program at 800.316.2796 for confidential consultation and resource services. Or visit mutualofomaha.com/eap.

In addition, The College offers Learn to Live, a free 100% confidential online program. Visit https://www.learntolive.com/partners and enter the code DUNWOODY.

Also see the CDC information about mental health and coping during COVID-19.

Please contact Student Affairs at studentaffairs@dunwoody.edu.

Resources for Internet Access

The following is a list of internet service providers that are offering free or discounted options to help alleviate financial burdens during this time:

• Comcast is offering two months of free service to new customers, and available to eligible low-income households.  More Information
• Comcast is also offering access to all Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots, for free, to anyone who needs it.  More Information
  • Find a hotspot near you.  More Information
• CenturyLink is offering telephone and internet service for eligible low-income households.  More Information
• City of Minneapolis has opened their Wi-Fi for free temporary internet access.  More Information
• Cellular Service: If you have cell service, including a data plan, you can use your phone as a hotspot for your laptop.  Check with your service provider for all available options.  You can also use your cell phones mobile applications to gain access to many of the services required for your education, such as, Canvas, Launchpad, and Office 365.  See the IT Resources section in Launchpad for directions on how to install the mobile applications on your cell phone.
• Local Restaurants, Coffee Shops, or Dunwoody:  Even though the majority of these places are not open, you can often access the Wi-Fi when near the location, such as, from the parking lot.

While Dunwoody’s plan is to continue offering on-campus labs this fall, it will comply with any orders issued by the State of Minnesota. In the event that another Stay at Home order is issued, Dunwoody is prepared to transition its lab activities to an online format if needed, with the intention of resuming in-person activities as soon as the order is lifted.

In the event of a student or employee testing positive for COVID-19, the College is prepared to perform contact tracing and will notify all individuals known to have come in close contact with the individual. Those individuals may be required to quarantine for 14 days before being allowed to return to campus.

In the event that a student becomes ill during the course of the semester, they should notify their faculty who will then work with them to develop a plan to make up any lost or missing time to ensure they are able to complete their semester.