As the University begins a staged ramp-up to the resumption of on-campus research, please refer to the below FAQ for BSD-specific guidance on common questions. If you have further questions that are not answered below, please reach out to the appropriate contact listed on our Coronavirus Guidance page.
The pandemic environment can evolve very rapidly and result in quick changes to management of in-person activities. Please review the University’s ramp-up website regularly for updated information and watch for related communications from the University and unit leaders.
Yes, they must be worn to reduce risk to other staff in the space
Yes, they must be worn to reduce risk to other staff in the space.
No, your face covering can be removed if there is one person in the office and the door is closed.
Where feasible, meetings should be held using online collaboration tools (e.g., Zoom, Teams, etc.) rather than in person, even if employees are on campus. In-person meetings must adhere to state/city limits on the number of people allowed to gather, and individuals must maintain 6 feet of separation from one another. Please refer to University Guidance for more details about safely using conference rooms.
We have restricted the number of occupants to 1 per cab.
At this stage in the ramp-up, people may take stairs or elevators regardless of floor.
No, at this stage you may take the stairs in either direction, but face coverings should be worn at all times, including in stairways, to lower the risk created by unavoidable passing.
Please refer to the BSD Electronic Sanitization Guidelines.
Please contact bsdis@bsd.uchicago.edu to schedule a time to image your computer.
We are currently seeing an increase in stock and shorter shipping times from most manufacturers. While not quite at pre-COVID levels, the availability and shipping times are now more reasonable.
Webcams are still in very high demand and not widely available. If you wish to have video functionality for your meetings, we suggest using either a laptop with a webcam or installin the Zoom app on your phone or tablet and joining the meeting with that device.
Yes. Although IT staff are on campus, we are not at full capacity and are continuing to work remotely and follow social distancing guidelines. Whenever possible, we will continue to use remote tools to assist you even when both parties are on campus. Please also be aware that during this time, you may not be assisted by your normal technician.
We will post signage at facility entrances, elevator vestibules, and elevator cabs providing information on social distancing, along with visual cues such as floor decals and signs to indicate where people should stand while waiting. We will also provide signage templates that individual departments/units can use to provide guidance.
We will not provide upgrades to water fountains. We would suggest people wipe down the button before pressing it to fill up their water container.
No, but there are numerous online sites where these tools can be purchased, pending availability.
Yes, but we recommend faculty/staff and department administration propose their own solutions prior to asking Space Planning for assistance. If after this you still require help, you may contact Scott DeBlaze at sdeblaze@bsd.uchicago.edu.
Please visit https://space.bsd.uchicago.edu/index.html. If you do not have access please contact Masahiro Kinoshita at mkinoshi@bsd.uchicago.edu.
We are not recommending using temporary partitions at this stage of the ramp-up. We recommend lab staff members face the same direction if possible. Please reach out to Scott DeBlaze at sdeblaze@bsd.uchicago.edu if for some reason this cannot occur and our office will come up with a safe manner for research activities to proceed.
In accordance with University guidance, individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 should not come to campus for at least 10 days AND must be symptom-free for an additional 72 hours before returning to work.
In accordance with University guidelines, anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 and has been in a University-owned or operated facility must contact C19HealthReport@uchicago.edu so that the health and safety of others in our facilities can be addressed.
The University’s new safety training is required for each member of the lab and completion is necessary before building access will be granted. This training includes two components:
- Attestation (The attestation is a “read this first” document to start the training and you must click and complete the attestation using the “click me” icon on that page.)
- “COVID-19, Controlled resumption of research activities” course for laboratory personnel
For those who will be on campus to support activities during phase 2, but not working in a research laboratory the "COVID-19 General Safety Training" course should be taken instead of the "COVID-19, Controlled resumption of research activities" course. (e.g. only one of the two courses is required)
These safety courses are available at https://ehsa.uchicago.edu/training