Vaccinations, including boosters, continue to be required for students, faculty, and staff, as recommended by the CDC. New first-year and transfer students must be fully vaccinated, except for those with approved medical or religious exemptions. Students requesting an exemption should reach out to Health Services; faculty and staff requesting an exemption should reach out to Human Resources.
New students should upload proof of their COVID-19 vaccinations in the pre-arrival tracker.
Current students who have a COVID vaccine dose that they have not already uploaded should upload that proof here.
After the arrival of students, symptomatic testing will be done out of Health Services, 175 West Knox Street (Furrow Hall). Testing will be available Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 9:00 a.m. to noon.
Our COVID-19 Testing Dashboard shares current testing results of Knox College students and employees.
In the event that a Knox student tests positive for COVID-19, Knox Health Services staff are certified to carry out contact tracing within the Knox community.
Masks will be optional; we will not require individuals to wear masks indoors, except for in these settings:
Any individual may require masks in their personal offices and living spaces as they deem necessary, and anyone who is not yet fully vaccinated (including receiving boosters), who is at elevated risk, or who has family members at risk are strongly encouraged to wear masks indoors. Everyone on campus should keep a mask with them for times when extra protection is needed, or if they are exhibiting COVID-like symptoms.
We ask every member of our campus community to support and offer respect for those who choose to wear masks.
All members of our campus community must practice proper hand washing and respiratory etiquette by covering mouths and noses when coughing or sneezing, using tissues and throwing them away, and washing hands or using hand sanitizer after touching noses or mouths.
If you need more information on a topic or have questions that are not included below, email together@knox.edu.
Students:
Any students testing positive for COVID-19 must isolate for five days, in their own room if they have a single and in isolation spaces if they have roommates, and follow isolation with five days of masking. Should students test positive, they will need to work directly with faculty members to make arrangements to stay current in classes as they would for other medical situations.
Faculty and Staff:
If a faculty or staff member tests positive, they must notify Human Resources ( hr@knox.edu or 309-341-7137) and self-isolate at home.
Positive with symptoms:
Positive without symptoms:
Unvaccinated or partially vaccinated individuals must quarantine for 7 days.
If a student tests positive, they will typically receive this call between 9:00 a.m. and noon on the day that they received their result, or if the result is received in the evening or overnight, contact will be made the following day.
Please keep in mind that on any given day, Health Services may be reaching out to anywhere from three to 30 people, and each call requires a conversation to make the appropriate isolation arrangements. Health Services will also prioritize notifications by reaching out to those who live on campus with one or more roommates first.
Employees will not receive a call from Health Services; employees must notify HR of a positive test.
If your roommate tests positive, you are considered a close contact, and will test four to five days after your last contact or sooner if you develop symptoms. You may test more than once if you would like. As long as you are vaccinated and have no symptoms, you may attend classes and in-person activities while masked.
Any one who was less than six feet away from an infected person for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period. This could mean a full 15 minutes or more, or three individual five-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes.
If you are a close contact, you are advised to test four to five days after your last contact or sooner if you develop symptoms. As long as they have no symptoms, students may attend classes and in person activities while masked, and employees can attend work while following our existing mask policies.
Vaccinations, including boosters, continue to be required for students, faculty, and staff, as recommended by the CDC. New first-year and transfer students must be fully vaccinated, except for those with approved medical or religious exemptions. Students requesting an exemption should reach out to Health Services; faculty and staff requesting an exemption should reach out to Human Resources.
Booster vaccines remain available in Galesburg through multiple Walgreens and Hy-Vee Pharmacy locations, as well as CVS, Walmart, and the Knox County Health Department.
Masks will be optional; we will not require individuals to wear masks indoors, except for in these settings:
Instructors may require masks in indoor classrooms, labs, and studios. Failure to comply with a classroom mask requirement may result in a violation of our student conduct policy.
Inside the Student Health Services building, and at the COVID testing site.
Masks may be required by the organizers of large meetings and events with 25 attendees or more.
Any individual may require masks in their personal offices and living spaces as they deem necessary, and anyone who is not yet fully vaccinated (including receiving boosters), who is at elevated risk, or who has family members at risk are strongly encouraged to wear masks indoors. Everyone on campus should keep a mask with them for times when extra protection is needed, or if they are exhibiting COVID-like symptoms.
We ask every member of our campus community to support and offer respect for those who choose to wear masks.
Symptomatic testing will be offered at Health Services, 175 West Knox Street (Furrow Hall). Testing will be available Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 9:00 a.m. to noon.
We will use the CDC’s definition of a close contact, which is any individual who has spent a total of 15 minutes or more within six feet of the infected person. All close contacts of an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19 will be contacted via email and provided with a close contact policy including instructions on when to test. Close contacts of individuals who test positive for COVID will not have to quarantine as long as they are asymptomatic.
Check out the most common symptoms of COVID-19 according to the Center for Disease Control. If you have one or more of these symptoms, the first thing to do is to stay in your residential hall room or stay home so you don’t spread it to others. If you are a student, contact Health Services at (309) 341-7559. If employees feel ill, they need to stay home from work, and if you are an employee who may have symptoms of COVID-19, please get a COVID test. Should an employee fall ill during any shift, accrued sick time can be used.
Enhanced cleaning and sanitizing practices are in place at Knox to ensure the health and safety of our community.
Most common areas have disinfecting wipes that are replenished by the custodial staff. These materials are for personal disinfection of shared spaces, such as meeting tables or classroom desks outside of the standard schedule. If you would like supplies or hand sanitizer in an additional space, please submit a work order.
https://www.knox.edu/knoxtogether/health-and-wellness
Printed on Friday, March 31, 2023