Maine Memo — Faculty and Staff Community update July 30

Dear University of Maine and University of Maine at Machias faculty and staff colleagues,

The delta variant is highly contagious and poses a grave health risk. Many members of our community have reached out to me to express their concerns and I am grateful for the opportunity to hear from and engage with so many of you.

This week I convened a meeting at the UMS Science Advisory Board to brief Chancellor Malloy on the latest information on the variant. I also asked faculty from our university and across the University of Maine System to join the Chancellor, his leadership team and me in a discussion on practices for the fall semester.

What we are hearing from our community, the guidance of public health officials, and all that we are learning from the data and the science are behind the plans we are preparing to announce for the fall semester. As the Chancellor noted earlier today, we will share this new guidance with you before the end of the day on Wednesday, Aug. 4.

As we have communicated constantly, it is more important than ever to be vaccinated as soon as possible to protect yourself and those you love, and to help reduce the spread of the disease.

UMaine and UMaine Machias community members should record their vaccination information on our secure campus portal. You will need your MaineStreet username and password to log on. Detailed instructions can be found online. Verified vaccination will exempt UMaine and UMaine Machias community members from weekly testing in the fall semester.

We will continue to communicate more information about the latest UMS health and safety guidance as it becomes available. Please keep yourselves safe.