Vaccines are free and available at the Atlanta Campus. You can learn more about the Georgia State Vaccine Clinic and register for a vaccine at https://covidinfo.gsu.edu/covid-19-resources/covid-19-vaccine/.

No. All faculty, staff and students are strongly encouraged to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. In addition to being protected from serious illness, those who are fully vaccinated and who are not experiencing symptoms will not be required to quarantine after close contact with an individual who is infected with COVID-19.  However, vaccinations are not required pursuant to University System of Georgia policy. For more information about obtaining a vaccine on campus, go to: https://covidinfo.gsu.edu/covid-19-resources/covid-19-vaccine/.

No. Your family and friends cannot be vaccinated at Georgia State unless they are a Georgia State employee or student. Georgia State is registered as a closed point of distribution, meaning that we can only offer vaccines to Georgia State faculty, staff, or students. You can learn more about where to get a vaccine in the community at https://georgia.gov/covid-vaccine.

Yes. You can get your second dose at Georgia State. Be aware that we may be limited to distributing a certain vaccine on any day. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that the vaccines not be interchanged. If the brand of vaccine you already received is unavailable, you may need to return another day.

Vaccinations are not required based on University System of Georgia policy. However, students are strongly encouraged to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccination has proven to be the most effective protection against COVID-19 and is the best way to prevent severe illness, hospitalization and death, and stop the spread of the virus. By getting vaccinated, you will not only be providing a crucial safeguard for yourself, but you will be contributing to the wellness of everyone else. In addition to being protected from serious illness, those who are fully vaccinated and who are not experiencing symptoms will not be required to quarantine after close contact with an individual who is infected with COVID-19. For more information about obtaining a vaccine on campus, click here.

In general, no. Pursuant to University System of Georgia policy, it is not permissible to ask anyone on campus whether they are vaccinated, with limited exceptions. Medical providers may ask questions regarding vaccination status for the purposes of providing medical care, and officials performing contact tracing after an infection is reported may do so as well.

In general, no. Faculty, staff and students may not treat vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals on campus differently, with limited exceptions. It is permissible for contact tracing staff to use vaccination status to determine whether or not a person should quarantine after close contact with a person who tests positive for COVID-19.

Instructors and staff may not ask about COVID vaccination or COVID test result status.

The University System of Georgia (USG) continues to recognize COVID-19 vaccines and boosters offer safe, effective protection and urges all students, faculty, staff and visitors to get vaccinated and/or boosted either on campus or with a local provider. As USG works closely with the Georgia Department of Public Health to prioritize the health and safety of campus communities, the system encourages people to wear masks based on their preference and assessment of personal risk.

 

Yes, special Georgia State logo and Pounce masks are available while supplies last through the Student Center East Information Center on the Atlanta Campus and through the Student Life offices on each Perimeter College campus. Students may receive one mask each. Disposable masks will also be available at high-traffic locations and anywhere that might require a mask, such as the Health Center.

Yes. Students may be required by off-campus partnering organizations to wear masks and/or be vaccinated as a condition of participation in experiential learning opportunities such as study abroad programs and externships.

Yes, this is permissible. However, masks are not required to be worn on campus outside of the University Health Center. Because mask usage is voluntary, you may not require anyone to wear a mask or impose consequences for not doing so. It is important to treat all individuals in our campus community with respect regardless of their mask usage.

Based on the University System of Georgia policy, Georgia State University will return in the spring with no social distancing measures in place. However, unvaccinated individuals are strongly encouraged to use social distancing whenever possible.

Our facilities team has developed a plan to provide regular cleaning and disinfecting around our campuses. A description of the plan can be found here:

https://facilities.gsu.edu/files/2021/07/GSU-Building-Services-Scope.pdf

Our air-handling units are equipped with air filters. We have installed UV lights in the air-handling units in many locations around our campuses. We are procuring additional portable air purifier machines for deployment in strategic locations.

HVAC and Mechanical Systems:

Ventilation Capacity: Every building on campus is designed in accordance with the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-condition Engineers (ASHRAE) ventilation code 62.1. Ventilation rates vary based on occupancy (e.g. classrooms, offices, laboratories, etc.), however, in office and classroom buildings across campus a minimum of 30 percent of fresh air is delivered to individual spaces. These ventilation rates have been increased, where possible, to 50 percent. Any increases beyond that level could result in major mechanical, environmental and comfort issues, as mechanical equipment on campus is generally not designed to cool 100 percent fresh air during extreme summer conditions (e.g. temperatures over 90°F, humidity over 50 percent). Laboratory buildings are designed to always provide 100 percent fresh air because contaminants from laboratory spaces cannot be recirculated.

Filtration: The air distribution systems on campus utilize a variety of filter types, depending on the design, age, and space usage type. These types of filters include Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value (MERV) 8, 11, 13, and 14. Many of our building air distribution systems are not designed to accommodate high-efficiency particulate absorbing (HEPA) filters because the fan motors are designed to pull air through the filters according to a specific pressure rating. Increasing the pressure rating of the filter (i.e. replacing existing MERV 8 – 14 filters with HEPA filters) would result in a reduction of air flow and excess load on the fan motors which can cause fan failure.

Ultraviolet Light Disinfection: A majority of our high usage buildings (e.g. classroom and office buildings) have had their air distribution systems retrofitted with ultraviolet (UV) light disinfection systems. These systems are designed to kill viruses and bacteria in the air stream and on surfaces within the air distribution infrastructure.

Portable Air Filtration Devices: Facilities has purchased portable air filtration devices for use across campus. These filtration devices utilize a particulate, HEPA and carbon filters in addition to UV light sterilization.

For all faculty and staff, COVID-19 related accommodations and flexible work arrangements expired on June 30, 2021. Individuals who need Americans with Disabilities Act accommodations must follow the pre-pandemic procedure in place as outlined here. In some cases, employees can request a remote work arrangement, which is available at the discretion of the supervisor when appropriate and beneficial to both the university and employee. You can find out more about the policy here.

For students, we have a number of online courses available to provide the maximum flexibility possible in terms of scheduling. If you have questions in this regard, you should speak with your academic adviser.

Find locations here.

Reports for university infection levels on campus are shared on the statistics page found at https://covidinfo.gsu.edu/covid-19-resources/covid-19-statistics/.

Isolation

If you test positive for COVID-19, everyone (regardless of vaccination status) must:

• Isolate at home for five days from the date symptoms first appeared or, if asymptomatic, the date of the positive test. Stay away from others in the household as much as possible during isolation.
• After five days, if you have no symptoms or your symptoms are resolving and you have not had a fever for more than 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication, you may end isolation. If symptoms are not improving or fever has not resolved, you should continue isolating until these criteria are met.
• After ending isolation, you should continue to wear a mask around others for five days.

Quarantine

If you have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 and you are:

• Boosted, or have become fully vaccinated within the last six months (Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine) or within the last two months (Johnson & Johnson vaccine):
  • You do not need to quarantine at home.
  • You should wear a mask around others for 10 days.
  • If possible, get tested on day five.
  • If you develop symptoms, get tested and isolate at home until test results are received, then proceed in accordance with the test results.
• Unvaccinated, or became fully vaccinated more than six months ago (Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech  vaccine) or more than two months ago (Johnson & Johnson vaccine) and have not received a booster:
  • You must quarantine at home for five days. After that, continue to wear a mask around others for five additional days.
  • If possible, get tested on day five.
  • If you develop symptoms, get tested and isolate at home until test results are received, then proceed in accordance with the test results.
• If you have come into close contact with someone with COVID-19 and you have had confirmed COVID-19 within the last 90 days (you tested positive using a viral test) you do not need to quarantine.

 

No. Staff and students are not required to provide proof negative testing after isolation. Those with a positive COVID-19 test may persistently test positive even after they are no longer infectious.