New COVID Tests Required for Students Living On, Near Campus, and All Coming to Campus as of Sept. 14

Dr. Sacred Bodison, interim director of the University Health Center, sent the following message to the campus community today:

As we continue the gradual reopening of campus, with the expectation that in-person undergraduate education will begin on Sept. 14, this email provides important updates about testing requirements and your next opportunity for COVID-19 testing on campus.

For the last 15 days, we have tested over 12,500 students, faculty and staff for COVID-19 during our late August/early September testing event. It has been inspiring to see colleagues following the 4 Maryland behaviors by wearing masks, remaining physically distant, washing hands and staying home when feeling sick. These healthy behaviors are clearly helping our prevention efforts. However, we must remain vigilant. And, it is my strong hope that holiday weekend behaviors allow us to stay the course with in-person learning. Our behaviors matter!

Our next major testing event will begin the week of September 14. We will be holding testing at Maryland Stadium for nine days over the course of three weeks. Testing will be held on September 15-18, September 22-24, and September 29 and October 1 from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. each day. Appointments are available at return.umd.edu. Drop-in testing will not be available during this event. Advance registration will be required.

We know most members of our community have already been tested once or twice. In addition to any prior testing, the following campus community members are required to be tested once again during this September testing event:

• All graduate and undergraduate students living on campus or in the College Park area;
• All students who will commute to UMD for in-person classes or activities; and
• All faculty, staff and affiliates who will physically be coming to campus, or other UMD controlled spaces, on or after Sept. 14. This includes anyone who has delayed their physical arrival to campus, based on the delay of in-person teaching, and is coming to campus for the first time this semester. (However, please note that if you will not be coming to campus until after Oct. 15, you should not participate in our September testing event but rather a weekly event post-Oct. 15.)

If you have tested positive for COVID-19 within the past three months, you should not test again during this testing event.

After October 1, testing events will be held once a week for the duration of the semester. More information on specific dates, times, capacity, and locations of weekly testing events will be provided shortly and will be posted on return.umd.edu.

If you have any questions, please refer to our COVID-19 testing information site for information and FAQs. As always, please continue visiting umd.edu/4Maryland for all the latest information on healthy behaviors and review the campus dashboard about the presence of COVID-19 in our community. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact healthconcerns@umd.edu.

Be well,

Sacared Bodison, MD
Interim Director, University Health Center