[Physics-grads-announce] Happy Thanksgiving!!!

[Jory Yarmoff]

Dear Physics & Astronomy graduate students,

This is my first test of the new mailing list of grad students, so please please let me know if you don’t get this message (lol).  

I want to wish you all a happy and safe Thanksgiving, and provide a few updates. 

The campus has issued guidance about traveling during the Thanksgiving holiday, which you should have received directly from them, but I also pasted it below.  It provides our campus guidelines and also mentions the travel advisory issued by the State of California as well as the CDC recommendations for travel during this holiday.  Please pay attention to this, as keeping the spread of COVID under control is essential while vaccines are being developed and eventually distributed. 

A Canvas site entitled "Physics and Astronomy Graduate Student Community” is almost ready to deploy.  It will contain contact information for departmental leadership, policy documents, information from the last new grad student orientation and other items.  The site also has a “Suggestion Box”, which is a way to anonymously send comments to us.  More material will be added to the site as needed. 

We are also working with UCR’s ITS group to investigate platforms to use for creating discussion groups and improve communication.  I will let you know once this is set up, but you will be able to use the functionality of Canvas as soon as the site goes live, which should be within a week. 

Note that the campus will be switching from Blackboard to Canvas over the next couple of years, so you may have classes under both platforms for awhile. This is the reason that we chose Canvas for the community site.  You can access the Canvas platform at: https://elearn.ucr.edu <https://elearn.ucr.edu/>.  Our site should show up for each of you once we publish it. 

The Fall quarter town hall is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 3rd at 5 pm.  I will let you know what the agenda will be and send a zoom link ahead of time, but as a first town hall it will likely be pretty open as we want to hear from you.  If you have suggestions for items you would like to have covered or questions you would like to get answered, you can send them to me or submit them through the anonymous Suggestion Box on Canvas (once the site goes live). 

Happy Thanksgiving, and stay safe. 

__________________
Jory A. Yarmoff, Professor and Graduate Advisor
Department of Physics & Astronomy
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA  92521  USA

Office: (951) 827-5336, Lab: (951) 827-3537, FAX: (951) 827-4529
e-mail:  yarmoff at ucr.edu <mailto: yarmoff at ucr.edu>, web site: http://physics.ucr.edu <http://physics.ucr.edu/>

> Begin forwarded message:
> 
> From: Communications <communications at ucr.edu>
> Subject: [Ucrfacultyandstaff] Thanksgiving Travel
> Date: November 20, 2020 at 10:44:30 AM PST
> To: "ucrfacultyandstaff at scotmail.ucr.edu" <ucrfacultyandstaff at scotmail.ucr.edu>, "students at scotmail.ucr.edu" <students at scotmail.ucr.edu>
> Reply-To: noreply at scotmail.ucr.edu
> 
> Dear Campus Community,
> 
> This week, the United States saw its deadliest day for COVID-19 while California’s 102% increase in positive cases over the last two weeks triggered a return to broader restrictions statewide and implementation of a limited stay-at-home order <https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/limited-stay-at-home-order.aspx>. Additionally, last Friday, the State of California issued a travel advisory <https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/Travel-Advisory.aspx> stating that all persons traveling to California should practice self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival. In response to these changes, we are putting new procedures in place to keep our community safe.
> 
> As we approach the Thanksgiving holiday, please practice extra caution by limiting all in-person gatherings and non-essential travel. You may find the recommendations <https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/holidays.html> for holiday activities from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to be helpful. If possible, please refrain from traveling for Thanksgiving.
> 
> If you are a student living on campus, please stay on campus or stay home if you travel. If you are one of our employees currently working onsite, please stay home or celebrate in accordance with California Department of Public Health guidance <https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CID/DCDC/Pages/COVID-19/Guidance-for-the-Prevention-of-COVID-19-Transmission-for-Gatherings-November-2020.aspx> on gatherings. 
> 
> If you decide to travel, please note the below:
> 
> Any student who resides in campus-operated housing and who engages in any off-campus unmasked activity (sharing a meal, recreational activities, gatherings, etc.) is required to sequester for 14 days within their residential unit upon returning to campus.
> For students living in residence halls, sequester requires the student to wear face coverings and socially distance within the residential unit (with the exception of their personal bedroom and the shower), complete the daily wellness check, and undergo COVID-19 testing twice per week after returning to campus.
> Students living in apartments or family housing, who need to sequester will also need to complete the daily wellness check and undergo COVID-19 testing once per week.
> Essential employees approved to work on campus, who travel outside of their regular household for in-person gatherings, are recommended to sequester for 14 days and complete one COVID-19 test per week through their local or county provider.
> Supervisors and research plan owners are responsible for working with their teams concerning travel plans. Human Resources will soon provide guidance regarding options for employees who are recommended for sequester. Please reach out to Human Resources or Academic Personnel if you have any questions.
> 
> We recognize that further restrictions may be difficult, especially as the holidays approach. If you need help to navigate this phase of the pandemic, please do not hesitate to seek out additional support. Students who need professional and confidential mental health support may contact UC Riverside’s Counseling and Psychological Services <https://counseling.ucr.edu/> (CAPS <https://counseling.ucr.edu/>) at 951-827-5531. CAPS offers free services to all UC Riverside students. 
> 
> Staff and faculty can contact the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program <https://hr.ucr.edu/employee-resources/faculty-and-staff-assistance-program> for confidential counseling, referral, or other resources.
> 
> Your resilience and commitment to our community throughout the pandemic has been remarkable. Please remain diligent in your personal efforts to stay healthy and safe while also supporting those around you.
> 
> Stay healthy,
> 
> Kim A. Wilcox,
> Chancellor
>  
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