UWF closes dorms today
Pensacola, Fla. – Although there are no presumptive or confirmed cases of COVID-19 at any University of West Florida campuses or locations, out of care for the campus community, UWF business operations will be conducted remotely from 12 a.m. on Sunday, March 15, 2020, to 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, March 29, 2020. Essential personnel are expected to report to work, unless otherwise authorized by their supervisor.
All courses will be offered remotely from March 16 until March 30, 2020.
Housing and Residence Life Closure
All students living in university housing must return to permanent home residences or a non-campus alternative housing arrangement, effective immediately, today March 14 until March 30, 2020.
If you need to visit campus to gather personal belongings, you may do so until 5 p.m. on March 15, 2020.
We understand that there will be extenuating circumstances. Housing and Residence Life will work with students who are not able to return home during this time period on an individual basis. Please contact Housing and Residence Life at housing@uwf.edu by 5 p.m. on Sunday, March 15, 2020.
Campus Services
Limited campus services will be available to those students who are authorized to stay in campus housing, including dining services and residence assistance. Counseling, Psychological Services and Health Services will move all appointments to telephone.
All other campus facilities, including but not limited to Health, Leisure, and Sports Facility, Aquatic Center, University Libraries, the Education Research Center for Child Development and athletic facilities will be closed.
Employees Reporting to Work Changes
Only essential personnel are expected to report to work from 12 a.m. Sunday, March 15, 2020 through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, March 29, 2020. Employees who are unsure of their status must seek guidance from their supervisor.
Non-essential personnel, including OPS and student employees, are expected to work remotely during this time period. Supervisors are expected to provide assignments to employees. Employees working remotely are expected to:
- Fulfill all of their normal duties and work hours.
- Ensure that they are connecting securely and following all University policies related to access, data security and data confidentiality. Employees should contact ITS for IT-related questions.
- Review Continuity Tools provided by ITS.
If employees are in roles that do not traditionally accommodate remote work, supervisors must assign other work, projects or professional development that can be performed remotely.
Faculty who need to visit campus in order to utilize university tools to continue to fulfill the academic mission must notify their dean and department chair before visiting campus. Faculty that need in-person services from Global Online may visit campus. Virtual training bootcamps are also available to faculty through the Global Online website.
During emergency and adverse situations, supervisors are encouraged to allow employees to fulfill family care responsibilities due to illness or closing of schools, daycares, assisted living facilities, etc. during telecommuting if the employee can effectively balance family care and work.
An employee who is unable to work due to a family care emergency may use one of the following types of time off to account for time away from work, with supervisory approval:
- Accrued leave
- Leave without Pay
All employees are still required to submit leave reports and time sheets by the appropriate deadlines. Please contact Human Resources with any questions hr@uwf.edu.
Social Distancing
Social distancing is the best way to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. Social distancing refers to measures that are taken to increase the physical space between people to slow the spread of the virus. By maintaining a distance of six feet from others when possible, people may limit the spread of the virus. Social distancing also minimizes the number of interactions that provide the opportunity for the disease to spread.
Additional information and Frequently Asked Questions are available at uwf.edu/coronavirus. The University will continue providing updates as soon as information is available.
Pensacola Christian College goes for rest of the semester
Pensacola Christian College classes will be offered online only beginning March 23 for the remainder of the semester. Classes are canceled until March 23 to allow students to travel home and faculty to transition to online instructional delivery. While most students will go home to complete coursework remotely, students whose home may be overseas or in an unhealthy area greatly impacted by COVID-19 will be permitted to live on campus while studying online.
Alabama shuts down schools
Governor Kay Ivey issued a state of emergency for Alabama Friday and announced all K-12 schools will close for two weeks starting March 19 to prevent the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19).
Transportation Meetings Postponed
The Emerald Coast Regional Council has postponed all upcoming transportation public meetings as a precaution for COVID-19. These meetings include all meetings of the Florida-Alabama, Okaloosa-Walton, and Bay County Transportation Planning Organizations (TPOs) and their committees.
The following meetings are postponed:
Florida-Alabama TPO Long Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) Steering Committee on Monday, March 16 at 9 a.m. in Pensacola City Hall
Okaloosa-Walton TPO LRTP Amendment Public Workshop #1 on Monday, March 16 at 5 p.m. in Fort Walton Beach Library
Okaloosa-Walton TPO LRTP Amendment Public Workshop #2 on Tuesday, March 17 at 5 p.m. in Crestview Public Library
Bay County TPO LRTP Steering Committee on Thursday, March 19 at 10:30 a.m. in Panama City Hall
All meetings will be rescheduled after May 1, 2020, details of rescheduled meetings will be sent out for public notice.
Jazz Competition
Following the decisions of the City of Pensacola and Escambia County related to COVD-19, Jazz Pensacola is postponing the Student Jazz Competition scheduled for Monday, March 16, at Phineas Phogg’s in Seville Quarter. A new date will be determined.
Center of Independent Living to stay open
In the interest of health concerns for our consumers and members of the community, the CILDRC Staff will continue operating standard business hours 8 am-4 pm, but we will manage day-to-day activities by appointment and remotely. For the health and safety of all, we will not be able to have walk-ins at this time.
Our staff will continue checking emails and voice messages during business hours. We will do everything we can to assist individuals with urgent matters in a timely manner.
We look forward to assisting you during our standard operating hours of a 8 am – 4 pm, Monday thru Friday via phone 595-5566 or email us at info@cil-drc.org. You may also call or email us after hours and messages will be returned as soon as we can.