Important Steps to Reduce the Spread of COVID – Coronavirus Response – Duke’s Coronavirus Response

Dear Colleagues,

You have all seen the reports about the rapid surge of COVID cases locally and nationally as a result of the Delta variant. Duke has not been untouched by this indeed, even with91% of our employeesand95% of our studentsfully vaccinated, we have still recorded a notable increase in positive tests over the past week. Thus far,the vast majority of these positive tests have been among individuals who are fully vaccinated; the majority of those are asymptomatic, with others reporting minor cold- and flu-like symptoms.

We know that many of you are concerned about transmission on campus, and we want to take this opportunity to provide some additional information and guidance. We cannot eliminate COVID, but we can take some important steps thathave beendemonstrated to reduce the spread of the virus and protect the community:

We believe that the on-campus, in-person educational experience is important for the educational and emotional well-being of our students. Be assured that we are constantly monitoring the environment, particularly with respect to where and when COVID transmission appears to be occurring. Our uniformly high vaccination rates, robust surveillance testing, universal masking and the absence of any documented classroom transmission indicate that we can continue safely with our classroom and residential experience. Please know, though, that we are in close and regular contact with Duke infectious disease and public health experts and will take all necessary actions to protect the health and safety of our university community.

Sincerely,

SallyKornbluthProvost and Jo Rae Wright University Professor

Kyle CavanaughVice President for Administration

This message is being sent to all Duke University faculty and staff

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Important Steps to Reduce the Spread of COVID - Coronavirus Response - Duke's Coronavirus Response