Coronavirus Update

As Florida State University continues to closely monitor advisories and updates from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), University leadership is working to prepare the campus should we need to respond to an outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus. FSU will continue to coordinate with state and local health officials and emergency management personnel, and we will continue to distribute updates via email and through the FSU Alert system as specific information becomes available.

At this time, departments should work to ensure optimal preparation by minimizing the potential for disruption of business operations. We recommend departments adhere to the following:

• Disseminate reliable information (CDC, Florida Department of Health (FDOH), and official University communications) about the disease and its potential transmission promptly to the students, staff, and faculty in your department. Communications should include guidelines for preventing the spread of germs such as proper hand washing, encouraging sick employees to stay home, and checking with healthcare providers should they experience flu-like symptoms.
  
   
• Review applicable University policies and procedures related to business operations and evaluate whether business tasks could continue during an extended campus closure. Evaluation should include identification of essential personnel, the feasibility of remote work options, an inventory of equipment necessary to connect to essential resources, and the prioritization of essential business tasks that must continue. Departments need to consider specific operations that will need to continue if campus experiences a partial or full closure.
  
   
• Because University software applications can be accessed via the internet from remote locations, employees will still be expected to enter time worked and leave used in accordance with University policy & guidelines. Employees who have administrative responsibilities, including payroll processing, should make appropriate preparations to check myFSU BI (Actives, Cost Center) and make any needed corrections to their department’s payroll from a remote location.

Resources

Please reference this document containing FAQs for supervisors.

Refer to the FSU Alert page for the University's emergency information and instructions. Additional information regarding the basics of the disease as well as interim guidance for U.S. institutions of higher education can be found on the CDC website.

Questions? For faculty and staff matters related to this issue, please contact Tracey Pearson (staff) at (850) 644-3694 or Rebecca Peterson (faculty) at (850) 645-2202.