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COVID-19 Update: Campus Operations (Message from Chancellor Maenette Benham)

Date/Time sent: 03/21/2020 8:12 am

Aloha mai kākou UHWO Faculty and Staff!

Per the UH System Message yesterday, Friday, March 20, our campuses are closed to the public except for our employees and students. Of course we will be accepting deliveries, emergency vehicles, postal service, and so on, and our contractors are continuing their work on the Creative Media building and our new C-Building lanai. We wanted to update you about what is open and closed on our campus to begin Monday, March 23.

Regarding Campus Buildings and Facilities

As our campus is only open to employee and current students, to ensure the safety and health of our campus community, we will be closing some parts of campus and maximizing social distancing in our open facilities.

  • Both buildings D and E will be gated/closed. Faculty can access their offices ONLY. ALL Classrooms will be undergoing general and deep cleaning and will be closed/DO NOT USE any of the classrooms during this time.
  • Specific classrooms and labs will be open in the Administration and Health Science (A) Building. Faculty can access their offices.
  • Should faculty or staff require use of a classroom during this time please contact your Vice Chancellor (Moniz, Javinar, or Ishida).
  • Currently, Student Services in “C” Building is open, however, Nāulu Center, Multi-Purpose Room, and C-225 are closed. The Student Life Center, Federal Credit Union, and Bookstore have an abbreviated schedule.
  • The Administration Building is open with limited staffing.

James & Abigail Campbell Library

The library is only open to employees and students currently with reduced hours and limited capacity. Here are the hours:

10:00am – 4:00pm Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday

1:00pm-7:00pm Wednesday

Closed Saturday and Sunday

We encourage students and employees to sign-in through an online reservation system that will be linked to the UHWO Library website. However, employee and student walk-ins will be allowed entry as long as we have not yet reached social distancing capacity.

Regarding Personal Travel Over Spring Break

Our hope is that you and family are safe and healthy, and are following all CDC guidelines for travelers returning home from hot spots where there is widespread transmission of COVID-19. See these sites for more information:

CDC Travel info: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/index.html

DOH Travel info: https://hawaiicovid19.com/guidance-for-everyone/

Because our instruction and most of our campus support functions are now being conducted remotely/online (Distance Education) we strongly encourage you to consider staying-in-place for 14 days. Please contact your supervisor or Vice Chancellor should you have any questions or concerns. Check the UH West Oʻahu COVID-19 website for updates.

Mahalo nūnui kākou! On behalf of our executive team (Chancellor and VCs) MAHALO to all of you for your patience, your professionalism, and your care for one-another. This is a challenging time and we will get through this together. PLEASE check your hawaii.edu account daily.

E mālama pono!
Chancellor Maenette Benham