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FA C U LT Y, S TA F F & F I N A N C E S
completely fill the $150 million [estimated budget loss if OU moved to all online classes in the fall] hole? We are faced with a dynamic situation and the equation changes nearly every day. We will continue to remain vigilant, carefully reviewing all options and making informed decisions based upon the evolving circumstances. Aug. 24: How was the $150 million shortfall number agreed upon, and what sums make up the $150 million? What is the direct link between moving online and the $150 million shortfall? Answer provided Aug. 27: Each year, the university makes appropriate adjustments to its budget accounting for the level of state appropriations, which has changed dramatically over the years. State appropriations fund approximately 10% of the Norman campus operating budget today, in contrast to 1982 when they accounted for 42%. Since the pandemic, the financial toll on OU has been sizable. Like all universities, OU has seen losses since the beginning of the pandemic including conference and event cancellations, health care costs, increased IT expenses, loss of patient revenues, and increased cleaning costs. In early August, the university considered the financial impact to the Norman campus should classes be moved fully online prior to the start of the semester. At that point in time, the projections showed the university would suffer losses well in excess of $150 million. The factors related to the projected shortfall include, but are not limited to, not having a full football season, a possible 20% decrease in enrollment and a lack of housing, meal plans and parking revenues. _____________________________________________
Isolation Housing:
July 24: Could you outline what isolation housing for students will look like? Where will students in this form of housing be required to live? What will the monitoring of these students look like? If an OU Housing resident tests positive during the semester, they will be provided an individual room to self-isolate. OU Health Services will work with students for recovery; OU Food Services will provide delivered meals; and OU Residence Life will check in with these students daily and will connect them with resources and services as needed. Rooms are designed for students to have one bedroom and one bathroom per person. July 24: If students living off-campus test positive, what will their isolation process look like? How will they be monitored? Students who live off campus will be instructed to self-isolate in their off-campus residence. Positive cases are monitored by the health department. July 24: Which part of Traditions will students that test positive for COVID-19 be housed
in? What do administrators plan to do for students that permanently live in Traditions, as students with active COVID-19 cases will be housed there? On-campus students who need to self-isolate will be provided a space in Traditions. Each of these locations have their own entry, HVAC and will be placed in temporary apartments. Assistance will be provided from OU staff. OU Health Services will work with students for recovery; OU Food Services will provide delivered meals; and OU Residence Life will check in with these students daily and will connect them with resources and services as needed. Rooms are designed for students to have one bedroom and one bathroom per person. Students assigned to these spaces will not be paired with existing residents. July 27: Which Traditions will be isolation housing for students who get sick? (East or West?) Isolation housing includes individualized spaces in Traditions East and West. July 27: Where is isolation housing for international students? Is that Traditions as well? Students living in university-owned oncampus housing will use isolation housing in Traditions. Students arriving from outside the U.S. who anticipate living in OU Housing will have to self-isolate at an off-campus site to complete the three-step process to gain move-in clearance. July 27: What is being done to ensure students don’t get sick from sharing an HVAC system with known positive COVID-19 carriers? On-campus positive students will self-isolate in Traditions. Each apartment in Traditions has an individual HVAC unit to serve only that space. July 27: If a student’s roommate tests positive, will they have to quarantine along with their roommate? Answer provided July 29: Students living in on-campus housing, who test positive, will move to individualized isolation housing units located at Traditions East or West. On-campus housing students who need to self-isolate based on contact tracing efforts will do so in individualized isolation housing units located at Traditions East or West. Aug. 23: When [students who test positive for COVID-19] are moved to OU’s isolation housing, are they given a time period to gather their things and get to their isolation housing independently, or are they escorted by university/health care personnel to their new room? Answer provided Aug. 25: Once university officials are notified of a COVID-19 positive student in OU Housing, the student gathers needed items and reports to isolation housing using their own transportation. If they do not have personal transportation, the university provides it. Once a student arrives to temporary isolation housing, their access to their permanent assigned space is deactivated for 14 days. For additional information, please visit www.ou.edu/ housingandfood/covid-19/resident_care_plan.
Aug. 27: Will the university clean the dorm rooms of students who have had to go into isolation housing? How? The student can place a work order request to have their room cleaned. After the room has been vacated for 24 hours, Facilities Management will fully disinfect the room using a combination of electrostatic and hand-held sprayers with hospitalgrade disinfectant. Aug. 27: Will the university be releasing the number of students in isolation housing? The university plans on launching a COVID-19 dashboard in the coming days. The plan is to update the dashboard daily, covering a range of aggregate data, including Cleveland County and regional area statistics, as well as Goddard Health results of COVID-19 positive cases. At this time, isolation housing numbers will not be tracked as the number of students in isolation varies and isn’t fully reflective of all students in isolation, as many are expected to choose to isolate off-campus. Aug. 27: If the university has to use hotels to house isolated/quarantined students, will guests at the hotel be notified it is being used for COVID quarantine? This is dependent on the hotel policy. Aug. 27: Will the university pay for hotel rooms for COVID-positive students? If so, how much money has the university set aside for additional isolation housing at hotels? Yes, the university will cover expenses associated with the use of any hotel to support individuals who need to be isolated after exposure to someone with COVID-19 or quarantined after testing positive for the disease. Funding will be based on contract details, which have yet to be finalized. Aug. 27: Who from OU Health Services is doing the health checks of students in isolation housing? How many times a day do they visit? How long are these visits, and what is done on these visits? Students who have tested positive and are in isolation in OU Housing are checked on daily by housing staff. Health Services personnel check for signs and symptoms of those who are being contact traced in housing. Students who have tested positive and who are in isolation in OU Housing are checked on daily and connected to resources and services as needed. OU Health Services works with students for recovery; OU Food Services provides delivered meals; and OU Residence Life checks in with these students daily for any other needs. The duration of each visit varies. Aug. 27: Who is paying for these health checks? Do students need to use their own health insurance? There is no charge or insurance required for health checks. Aug. 27: How does the university decide if a COVID-positive resident should be hospitalized or go into isolation housing? Goddard Health staff evaluate COVID-positive student residents and on a case-by-case basis
