Dear campus community,
As you may be aware, Governor Baker issued a Stay at Home Advisory to go into effect at 12 pm on Tuesday, March 24. Salem State will make every effort to abide by the advisory, including only having essential personnel on campus. Those employees who have been identified as essential will be contacted by their area head.
At the same time, we also must continue to work to vacate our residence halls in case those facilities are needed to support the state’s response to the coronavirus, including the possibility of housing additional medical personnel or patients. Therefore, the optional residence life move-out process will continue as scheduled with a strict social distancing plan in effect.
Students should wait to arrive on campus until their official optional move-out date and time. If students are unable to participate, their belongings will be left in their rooms. However as mentioned above, due to potential evolving situations, you will be notified in advance of us needing that space. Please know we appreciate that your belongings are important to you. We realize that not all students will feel comfortable being on campus during the optional move-out period. A future move-out process will be announced in the coming weeks and students should continue to monitor their SSU email for updates.
Please know that students who have been given permission to stay on campus through the petition process will continue to have dine out food service through Aramark during this Stay at Home time.
Thank you for your remarkable support and adaptability as we shift to remote learning and advising. I also want to express my appreciation for two leaders on campus who have provided much direction during this unprecedented time. Gene Labonte, assistant vice president of public safety and risk management, and Elisa Castillo, PhD, licensed health care provider and assistant dean of students for wellness, have done an outstanding job of keeping our community healthy and safe.
On that note, I wish you all the same.
John Keenan
President