Dear RCC students and employees,
We are finally turning a corner with rapidly dropping COVID-19 cases in Oregon and, more specifically, Josephine and Jackson counties. Because of the widespread availability of vaccines, Gov. Brown is close to removing most of the current restrictions related to COVID-19. This includes changes to the guidance issued by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) and Oregon OSHA. I wanted to take a moment to outline those expected changes and related impacts to RCC operations, and take this opportunity to welcome the RCC community back to our campuses!
We anticipate that RCC will return to pre-pandemic protocols on June 30, 2021, or once we reach 70% vaccination levels in the state of Oregon, whichever comes first.
Below is a summary of our current updates. Click the headlines to find more details on our website:
RCC joins all community colleges in Oregon in encouraging employees and students to receive the vaccine for COVID-19 to protect themselves, the RCC learning environment, and our communities at large. Likewise, we join the majority of Oregon community colleges in not mandating vaccines for employees or students. As a learning institution, we will continue to share resources and information about the vaccine’s availability and efficacy.
The topic that generates the most questions is whether masks will be required for summer and fall terms. In accordance with the current guidance from the state and OHA, masks will no longer be mandatory on June 30, 2021, or once we reach 70% vaccination levels in Oregon, whichever comes first. However, RCC will encourage anyone who is not fully vaccinated to continue to wear a mask indoors in accordance with guidance from the CDC.
RCC will continue to make disposable masks available to students and employees who wish to continue wearing a mask while on campus, as well as continue to support those who choose to wear a mask regardless of the reason. Getting vaccinated is a personal decision and a number of our students and employees either cannot receive the vaccination for a number of reasons, choose not to receive the vaccination, and/or have been vaccinated and prefer to continue to wear a mask out of caution.
RCC will respect the decisions of all members of our campus community in regards to vaccination status and/or use or non-use of masks, and will expect every person on campus to respect the decisions of others as well. If you need help or support feeling comfortable on campus or need to discuss any concerns you may have please contact our Counseling department.
Case Reporting and Contact Tracing
If you have any questions or concerns regarding COVID-19 precautions on RCC campuses, please reach out to the RCC Risk Management department by contacting Sean Taggart at staggart@roguecc.edu or Wendy Jones at wjones@roguecc.edu.
Thank you,
Sean Taggart
Director of Risk Management
& Deputy Title IX Coordinator
Rogue Community College