Occupancy & Dining

All students, faculty and staff have been required to acknowledge adherence to the following COVID-19 related policies in order to be present on campus during the fall semester.

Campus Occupancy

Signs providing occupancy limitations have been posted throughout campus buildings. To aid with physical distancing, no space may exceed the occupancy maximum displayed on the associated posted sign. Only authorized personnel can remove/replace occupancy signs. In the event an occupancy sign needs to be replaced, contact Campus Safety at cssafety@colby-sawyer.edu with the building and door number.

Density in classrooms has been dramatically reduced to accommodate physical distancing. Like dining facilities, classrooms and labs are unique environments where additional protocols, including the ability to wipe down surface areas between uses and the use of masks, are now required. Though mixed guidance exists regarding best practices for physical distancing – the Department of Education encourages 3 feet, while the World Health Organization suggests 1 meter and the Centers for Disease Control And Prevention recommends 6 feet – the college is encouraging students to maintain a minimum physical distance of 6 feet whenever possible.

As teams have been working on each room, the college’s first priority was decreasing density dramatically. Second, teams sought to maintain a minimum of 3 feet of separation between instructor and students whenever possible. Currently, seating separation ranges from a maximum of 6 feet to a minimum of 3 feet. Student seating is arranged to minimize potential close contacts and eliminate the possibility of close contacts if possible. Please note that new COVID-19 capacity limits are for student seats only and do not include the instructor.

Classrooms

As a means to provide physical distancing consistent with the guidance provided by the CDC and State of New Hampshire, classroom seating calculations were set to provide 36 square feet of space per student (6’ by 6’ area) after ensuring 6 feet of area between the wall of the instructional area to the first student seat to ensure adequate instructional space.

Each classroom has been reconfigured to achieve the 6’ requirement. Most classrooms, with the exception of some computer labs and science labs, were configured with seating facing forward in one direction. While this seating arrangement may be inconsistent with group learning and project-based student interaction, this layout was necessary to maximize space and reduce the potential for virus transmission.

Common Areas and Elevators

Common areas (i.e. game room, residential building student lounges, open student spaces, etc.) have been reconfigured in accordance to recommendations made for 6’ physical distancing, including the repositioning of seating and tables, the removal of some fixtures and the use of restrictive seat labels to be placed on some multi-seat furnishings. Elevators on campus will have a maximum of two people at one time and the use of masks is mandatory.

Residence Halls

Residence Hall rooms have been reconfigured to provide residential students with the number of beds and space they will need in their room according to roommate formation preferences. Current Colby-Sawyer students can be guests in student rooms, if approved by all roommates. The total number of student guests and residents may not exceed the room occupancy posted for that space. Visitors from outside of the college will be asked to remain in the common area of the residential community, with proper face coverings and physical distancing enforced. See the full Guest Policy for more information.

Additionally, signage will be posted within residential communities and outside of common areas (lounges/kitchens/laundry rooms) which outline the number of students that can be in each particular area, and to reiterate physical distancing policies.

Resident Assistants

Resident Assistants will undergo an extensive training program focused on building connection and community, and the importance of COVID-19 related safety measures. Resident Assistants will work with students to determine efficient use of shared bathroom and kitchen spaces, to complement housekeeping’s rigorous cleaning schedule.

Resident Assistants will be an important resource to students in becoming positive, connected members of the community. Resident Assistants have been asked to help connect students to activities on campus and help them establish meaningful connections.

Dining Services

Move In

• Students will be given a Colby-Sawyer blue reusable bag at check in with a logo or welcoming design imprinted on it for use in picking up meals. 
• Beverages and snacks will be available at each of the check in areas for students and families.

Week 1 Quarantine

• Dining services will set up three mini cafeteria style operations at the Curb, the Dining Hall and Wheeler Hall. There will be a marked entrance and exit from each location and traffic will only go one way.
• Students will pick up their meals at a designated time and location by floor or RA group.  Volunteers will check off students as they arrive.
• Foods provided will be at traditional lunch and dinner times but will include additional beverages, snacks and breakfast foods. Food will be presented in covered containers and not served so as to reduce contact between quarantining students and dining services staff and volunteers. Unlike the fall, no one will order ahead and a variety of options will be provided.
• Vegan and vegetarian options, gluten free options and other options will be offered and will be labelled by allergen. Students with multiple or unusual allergies will be asked to reach out to the Dining Services Office before arrival on campus so that staff can make accommodations.
• Students will be able to take whatever they want just as they can in the dining hall.

Week 2 Quarantine

• Dining Services operations will return to the Ware Dining Hall. There will be no seating/dining in the Dining Hall and will be a purely take out operation.
• Staff will offer a more familiar menu of foods and stations with some foods made to order. The dining hall will continue to only be open for lunch and dinner and offer breakfast food to take out during other meal periods.
• To avoid crowding and excessive lines, meal times will continue to be designate by residence hall.

Note: Dining operations, including the Lodge, will be open for regular COVID-19 operations beginning Monday, Feb. 1.

Regular COVID-19 dining operations

Tables in the dining hall have been rearranged and some have been removed in order to accommodate physical distancing. Visual guides for walking routes have been posted and dining services staff will assist guests in implementing safe-serving strategies.

Instead of self service, staff will serve most items while others will be made available in individual packages. Beverage dispensers have been retrofitted and are now “no touch,” and all silverware will be disposable and come from touch free dispensers. Staff will wipe down all touch points in the serving area with disinfectant every 30 minutes, with the area to be shut down twice a day for an hour for a more thorough cleaning. Tables will be wiped with disinfectant in between guests. Four cleaning stations have also been set up around the dining hall so that students can wipe down their table before or after use if desired. Plexiglas barriers have been installed and tables added in the serving area to help promote physical distancing.

Like all students, faculty and staff, dining services staff will have their temperature taken daily and must answer daily health screening questions prior to starting of their workday. Staff will also be required to wear masks at all times.

• Masks are required in the dining room, serving area and the Lodge, except when seated and actively eating or drinking.
• A physical distance of at least 6-feet from others must be maintained while standing or moving through the dining hall and serving area.
• Furniture is arranged 6-feet apart with only four to six chairs per table to promote physical distancing. Furniture should not be arranged.
• Reusable containers are not allowed in the dining hall.
• New single use cups are required when refilling beverages.
• All food is available for takeout in single use disposable containers.
• Employees are welcome to get meals in the dining hall but for take-out only.  Due to space limitations, seating in the dining room is for students only.
• Commuter students can purchase dining hall eat-in meals with cash, credit card, meal plan or dining dollars with the cashier.
• Lodge food can only be ordered online and paid for with cash, credit card, and department charge or dining dollars. These meals require an ID that matches the order for pick-up.
• If picking up a meal for someone else, bring their ID to swipe .
• Follow all directional signage in dining services facilities.
• Due to limited seating, when finished your meal please exit the dining room to open eating and walking space for others.