[Summit] Brown & RISD Plans for Move-in, Pandemic Safety and Street Closures [Covid News no. 372]

Fri Sep 18 05:23:48 UTC 2020

Dear Neighbors,
Brown's Phase Two student move-in will be held this weekend, September 18-20. 

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To Brown Community: Decision on Plans f...
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As with Phase One, move-in will be spread over more time to reduce the number of families arriving simultaneously (students observing the Jewish High Holidays may arrive slightly earlier or later than these dates). Mask-wearing will be enforced for students, families and staff.
Phase Two will welcome some sophomores, juniors and seniors who wish to return to campus. The campus is following a three-semester "de-densification" model, so fewer students will return than in previous years. All students arriving in Phase Two will be subject to a mandatory 14-day Quiet Period. The University has seen strong compliance from students in Phase One.
You can check healthy.brown.edu any time to find Brown's updated health and safety protocols. The University's Campus Activity Status and COVID-19 Dashboard are also available.
Thank you,Katie

Street closures and traffic patterns:

Fri 9/18 through Sun 9/20 @ 7:30 am until 4:00 pm
Charlesfield Street: closed from Thayer Street to Brown Street.

Prospect Street: closed from Cushing Street to Bowen Street.

George Street: one-way east from Brown Street to Thayer Street.

Young Orchard Street: one-way east from Hope Street to Cooke Street.

EMERGENCY NO PARKING

Friday, September 18th @ 2:00 am THROUGH Sunday, September 20th @ 4:00 pm

Charlesfield Street from Thayer to Brown Streets.

Prospect Street from College to Waterman Streets.

Prospect Street from Cushing to Bowen Streets.

George Street from Brown to Thayer Streets.

Young Orchard Street from Hope to Cooke Streets

Thayer Street from Waterman to George Streets

-- 
Katie Silberman
Director of Community Relations
Brown University Office of Government & Community Relations
Join the conversation with "Brown & Providence" on Facebook and Twitter.

   ----- Forwarded Message ----- From: RISD Community Relations <community at risd.edu>To: 
Sent: Thursday, September 17, 2020, 2:10:11 PM EDTSubject: Community Update - September 17, 2020

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September 17, 2020 
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Dear Neighbors,

RISD’s semester has officially begun and the joy of making is coming alive across campus.  During RISD’s Convocation, held last week to begin the 144th academic year, the institution’s academic leaders reaffirmed the ability and willingness of students, faculty and staff to adapt to the continuity of change, embrace new technologies, new channels of creation, and new structures during these unprecedented times.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to be back in the studios; to make with our hands and look with our eyes,” said Interim Dean of Fine Arts Brooks Hagan. “There is an eagerness to make things. And (to understand) what making things provides to us in complement to new digital technologies.”

I will share more of what is happening in our studios as the semester progresses. In the meantime, please feel free to visit risd.edu/news for updated stories about RISD students, alumni, faculty and staff.

And while classes have begun, please know RISD continues to implement safety measures for this moment. In her opening letter, President Somerson reminded the RISD community of its shared responsibility to follow rules put in place to keep our entire community - both on and off campus - safe.  “We must remember the requirements of this time and acknowledge that we are a community with incredible creative power, one that can find unique AND safe ways to stay connected. Maybe by working through this together we will find instances that foster even greater connection. By following public health policies, we will minimize disruption and maintain access to our studios and shops for those on campus.”

As a reminder, you can find specific COVID related updates at covid.risd.edu.  And as always, I welcome the opportunity to share these important updates with more neighbors and friends. Please forward this email to anyone you think would be interested in receiving periodic updates or encourage them to join the email list.

If you have a question or concern, please feel free to reach out.

Sincerely,
Bethany Costello
Director of Community Relations

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Campus Opening 

Testing 
Baseline arrival testing for faculty and staff concluded on Wednesday, September 16. To date, 2,694 tests have been conducted with 3 positive cases identified. This is well within expected parameters, and RISD began in-person classes as planned on Thursday, September 17. Isolation, care, and contact tracing protocols are being followed for those testing positive, as outlined on the COVID website.

In addition to baseline arrival testing, RISD will test 50 percent of the on-campus population every week. This will allow us to test a majority of the population in the first semester to monitor the incidence of the virus on campus and follow early indications of shifts in public health trends. The cost of this test will be covered by RISD. Read more

Dashboard 
The RISD COVID-19 dashboard provides up-to-date statistics from ongoing campus testing. Updated daily Monday–Friday with laboratory-verified results, it offers the most accurate snapshot available of negative and positive COVID-19 tests and of the collective health of our community.

It is our hope that this dashboard helps illustrate the impact of our shared effort to contain COVID-19 and foster community health. Read more

Benefit Street Closure 
RISD has received permission from the City of Providence to close Benefit Street (between College Street and Waterman Street). This space will be used as additional outdoor meeting space for classes during the months of September and October.

As proposed, the plan will close off the street to vehicular traffic. Signage will be created to re-route vehicular traffic and additional signage will be created to inform pedestrian traffic.  The sidewalks will not be closed to pedestrians. The street itself will be taped off into multiple classroom areas following all social distancing protocols. The classroom spaces will  be very simple, filled only with chairs of eight or nine per cluster. Students and faculty will be required to follow all of the state and federal safety guidelines.

This space will complement several other exterior spaces that will be tented for the months of September and October. These exterior areas will be used mainly to provide additional social-distanced classroom space. Spaces include:

   - parking area at 161 South Main Street;
   - parking area at 231 South Main Street;
   - the parking lot beside Illustration building located at 55 Canal Walk;
   - Market Square, 8 North Main Street;
   - Farnum Park, 12 Congdon Street; and
   - the North Hall turn around located at 60 Waterman Street.

All of the outside areas are scheduled to be used only between the hours of 8am-6pm. Read more

Our goal with the outdoor space is to provide additional learning areas for our students, and still maintain the safety of our neighbors. Please feel free to email me directly at bcostell at risd.edu if you have any questions and/or concerns about the proposal.
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Other Campus News:
Nickerson Hall Reopens 
Renovations to Nickerson Hall are complete, marking the end of Phase 2 of the multiyear Quad block enhancement project. Originally built in 1957, Nickerson Hall’s structure and original slate roof were repaired and additional enhancements were made to support students and RISD’s vision for a sustainable future. The Quad block’s newly built North Hall opened in 2019, and Homer Hall renovations are slated for completion in 2021. Read more

RISD Continuing Education Offers free online classes to underserved youth
Thanks to an initiative funded by the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE), 145 middle and high school students from communities most at risk for experiencing summer learning loss took advantage of free online art and design classes offered by RISD Continuing Ed. Read more

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Rhode Island School of Design
 Two College Street
 Providence, RI 02903-2784 
USA
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 Copyright © 2020 Rhode Island School of Design, All rights reserved. 
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