News and announcements from Skidmore College

Weekly Bulletin

COVID-19 Updates

Summer COVID-19 surveillance testing guidelines

This is the final week of testing at Falstaff’s. There will be no campus testing this Friday, May 21, so the summer testing location can be moved.

Beginning on Monday, May 24, the requirements under the Skidmore College surveillance testing program will change. The following rules will apply to employees beginning May 24:

• Fully vaccinated (14 days past last dose of COVID-19 vaccine) employees are exempt from the College's surveillance testing program effective May 24.
• Testing after May 24 will continue to be required on a weekly basis for all non-vaccinated employees who will be working on campus with regular proximate contact (working in the same workspace) with co-workers or students.
• Non-vaccinated employees who will only come into incidental contact with others but otherwise work alone (either in their own private office or in a shared office space but who will work alone because of staggered staffing arrangements) are also exempt from the College's surveillance testing program effective May 24.

For those employees who must still participate in surveillance testing over the summer, all campus COVID-19 testing will take place in Palamountain 201 beginning on Monday, May 24.

The summer COVID-19 testing schedule will be:

• 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday
• 8 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday

Testing will not be offered on Memorial Day (May 31) and July 5, as these are College holidays. Instead, testing hours will be extended on the following Tuesdays, June 1 and July 6.

Please note: Testing is for surveillance testing only. Staff who are experiencing symptoms should contact their primary care provider. You must bring your Skidmore College ID for proper identification. Masks must be worn, and employees must maintain appropriate social distancing at all times.

Over the past year, the College has made a significant effort to create a safe campus community, and vaccinations are an important next step in returning to a normal learning and working environment. Please see the Employee COVID-19 Information section below for more information.

Skidmore News

Skidmore seniors exhibit creativity, social impact and a global outlook

As they maintained the strict COVID-19 guidelines that have kept the campus community safe, seniors brought resilience and innovative approaches to research, capstone projects, recitals, artwork and many other pursuits.

"No matter the score, keep going forward.”

Risa Fukushige ’21 and Stanley Langyintuo ’21, the 2021 winners of Skidmore Athletics’ Senior Athlete Award, reflect on their time as student-athletes before they graduate.

Cerri Banks to join Syracuse as vice president

Dean of students and vice president for student affairs at Skidmore since 2016, Banks is joining Syracuse University as vice president, Student Success, and deputy to the senior vice president, the university announced.

Dining Services

Murray-Aikins Dining Hall is now open to all faculty and staff. Please visit the Dining Services website regularly for updates, specials, hours of operation (including new summer hours) and other information. 

Pop-up Grill: Beginning June 3, Dining Services will hold a pop-up grill featuring hamburgers, hot dogs and plant-based Beyond Burgers from 11 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. every Wednesday and Friday (weather permitting) outside Burgess Café. $6.99 lunch combo meals and a la carte pricing are available. The grill is available to the entire Skidmore community. 

Human Resources

Annual Performance Reviews

At this time, staff should have completed an Accomplishment Summary & Development Review and provided this to their supervisors for review. This form is available on the Performance Review Resources webpage under the Forms heading. Supervisors should now review and draft the Performance Review, including a proposed overall Rating. Supervisors must notify HR of any staff rating that "Needs Development" or is "Unacceptable" no later than May 24, and should finish their review of the draft Performance Review with their supervisor by or around May 31, 2021. Please contact Brianna Herman if you have any questions about the process.

Employee COVID-19 Information

Vaccine sites

As the College makes preparations to return to full on-campus operations this fall, it continues to strongly encourage employees to get vaccinated. The Vaccination Registration – Saratoga County New York website offers a list of local locations, including drug stores, where appointments are available to local residents.

Reminder to Report Your COVID-19 Vaccination Status

As a reminder, employees who are fully vaccinated will be exempted from COVID-19 testing requirements starting May 24. As federal and state health and safety guidelines evolve to consider individuals’ vaccination status, the College will continue to align its testing program, health and safety policies, and anticipated return to full, on-campus employment with these guidelines. If you have not already done so, Human Resources requests that all employees complete the COVID-19 Vaccination Status form promptly. Employees who have not already submitted a copy of their vaccination card may do so by emailing vaccine@skidmore.edu. Please include [OME] in the subject line to encrypt your message.

The information submitted through the COVID-19 Vaccination Status form and vaccination records will be maintained confidentially by Human Resources. Skidmore College continues to strongly encourage all faculty and staff to get vaccinated as soon as possible as the next step in returning to a normal learning and working environment. If you have any questions regarding this process, please direct them to Interim Director of Human Resources Sarah Delaney Vero.

Paid Time Off for Vaccine Appointments During Work Hours

Skidmore strongly encourages all employees to get vaccinated. All employees who cannot schedule vaccination appointments outside of regular work hours will receive paid time off for work time missed due to receiving the vaccine. Exempt and nonexempt employees should record any work time missed due to traveling to and receiving the vaccination as sick time. Union employees should record this time as College Emergency Leave. To be eligible for paid leave, employees must provide proof of their vaccination appointment to their supervisor, who will work with Human Resources to approve a sufficient period of paid time off for each vaccine injection. The amount of paid time off will depend on the time and location of the vaccination appointment (e.g., local appointments may require 1 to 2 hours of paid time off to attend, while an appointment in Plattsburgh could require 4 hours of paid time off to account for the additional travel time.)

Daily Health Certification

The Daily Health Certification must be completed before or upon arrival to campus each day.

Testing for New Hires Working on Campus

Hiring managers should reach out to Leslie Miakisz to coordinate testing for new hires who will be working on campus. New hires should be tested within 72 hours of their first day of work on campus.

Skidmore Spotlight

Meet Sarah Ford

Sarah Ford, an environmental service technician in Facilities Services and a member of Skidmore’s COVID-19 cleaning team, has contributed to efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on campus this year.  

Faculty-Staff Achievements

Click here for details about the achievements below. 

Veena Chandra, private music instructor of music, has been selected by the New York Folklore Society to train two apprentices this summer. Read more >> 

Kristofer Covey, visiting assistant professor of environmental studies and sciences, presented research with Emme Tissue ’23, Siddharth Nizamuddin ’21 and Christina Lindstrom ’22. Read more >> 

Jenny H. Day, associate professor of history, published a scholarly article and delivered a public talk on her book. Read more >> 

Catherine J. Golden, professor of English, was quoted in an article on Jane Austen. Read more >> 

Christopher B. Mann, assistant professor of political science, was quoted in a news story, and a vote-by-mail mobilization program that he helped design is a finalist for an award. Read more >> 

Minita Sanghvi, assistant professor of management and business, was quoted in a Vanity Fair France article. Read more >> 

We welcome submissions from faculty and staff related to professional accomplishments and scholarly endeavors.

Announcements

Commencement

Commencement exercises for the Class of 2021 will be held Saturday, May 22, beginning at 10:40 a.m. at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, families and other guests are unfortunately not permitted to attend. The ceremony will be livestreamed. For more information, visit the Commencement website.

Employee Retirement and Recognition virtual ceremony

In lieu of our annual Employee Retirement and Recognition luncheon, a virtual Retirement and Recognition Ceremony will be shared with faculty, staff and retirees via email at 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 25. Employees are invited and encouraged to view the ceremony during work following the release. Supervisors should work with their team members to ensure all employees have the opportunity to view the video and join in the celebration of our retirees and service award honorees.

Monthly staff meeting

The next monthly staff meeting will take place from 1 to 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 26, via Zoom. Details for joining the Zoom forum will be sent via email this week.

“Finances of the College” presentation

A "Finances of the College" presentation to share updated FY'21 projections, the FY'22 operating budget and a five-year financial forecast will be held via Zoom at 1 p.m. Thursday, May 27. Details for joining the Zoom event will be shared via email.

Recent malware attacks and administrative access

In light of recent cyber security attacks responsible for taking down major systems at some higher education institutions, Information Technology will be implementing security measures designed to protect Skidmore from the increased risk of ransomware and other attacks which put the College, users and data at risk. In addition to the rollout of dual-factor authentication, Skidmore will be changing how administrative access on institutional hardware is made.

Effective May 31, you must contact the Help Desk at helpdesk@skidmore.edu before installing applications on your Skidmore laptop or PC. The User Services team has the tools and will coordinate with you directly in order to assist you in the installations of those applications. This will allow all of us to continue to use our computers to meet our needs while safeguarding our community.

If you have any questions about this change or would like to know more about what IT is doing to limit the risks of cyber security attacks, please contact Chief Technology Officer Dwane Sterling.

Senior Thesis Art Exhibition 2021

Skidmore’s annual Senior Thesis Exhibition is scheduled for May 15-22 at the Tang Teaching Museum. Twenty-six senior studio art majors will be displaying their work as a capstone to their studies. The exhibition is open to all Skidmore students, faculty and staff. Safety measures, including strict 6-foot social distancing and mask wearing, will be enforced. Virtual viewing is now available to the public.

Lunchtime Crochet: Saratoga Springs Satellite Reef

Associate Curator Rebecca McNamara hosts a lunchtime drop-in crocheting session from noon to 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 26. Join at your leisure to crochet and chat as we create corals for the “Saratoga Springs Satellite Reef.” Open to everyone, and all skill levels are welcome. For more information, contact Rebecca McNamara.

Private Music Lessons Scholarship opportunity

The Skidmore Music Department invites students who are thinking of studying or continuing the study of an instrument or voice to consider applying for a lesson scholarship. The submission deadline is June 1 for the fall semester. Details and eligibility requirements are posted on this website. For more information, please contact Artist-in-Residence Michael Emery.

Fall 2021 vegetable CSA shares now available

9 Miles East Farm will be delivering freshly harvested vegetables and herbs to subscribers in the Skidmore community for 12 consecutive Fridays starting Sept. 3. Shares are available by subscription only. Sign up online. Joining a CSA is a great way to support the local farm community. There are only 100 shares available for the entire campus community, so sign up now. Send questions to 9 Miles East Farm.

Fall 2021 Scheduling Notes from Religious and Spiritual Life

Faculty and staff are invited to check the Holidays and Religious Observances Calendar updated by the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL) as events are planned for the coming year. Of particular note for this year: Rosh Hashanah overlaps with New Student Orientation and the first day of classes, and Yom Kippur will be during the first full week of classes. Contact ORSL with any questions about scheduling and accommodations as well suggestions for updates and additions for the calendar.

Zankel Music Center

Although the Zankel Music Center was not able to present in-person events this year, the Skidmore Music Department students and faculty worked hard to learn and create beautiful music. Click on this link to see some of the music making captured this year.

Summer Jazz Institute loses longtime faculty member Curtis Fuller

The Summer Jazz Institute mourns the death of longtime faculty member and legendary trombonist Curtis Fuller. To read more about his life and legacy, please read this obituary published by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Athletics News

Skidmore College has selected Emanuel Valentin as its head men's and women's crew coach. Valentin is currently the Saratoga Rowing Association head varsity boys coach and the Advanced Rowing Initiative of the Northeast men's coach. Read more >>

Skidmore Shop

The Skidmore Shop will be closed the week of May 25 to process inventory and will reopen on Friday, May 28. During this time, please use skidmoreshop.com to place any orders. Thank you for your patience.

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Accessing College Resources

A comprehensive list of current resources and services available to the Skidmore community is now available online. This website will be updated frequently. Updates and additions to this list can be submitted by email.

Skidmore College continues to provide campuswide updates on the Campus Planning 2020-21 website.  

 Please send submissions to the Office of Communications and Marketing. 

Skidmore College

 815 North Broadway

 Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

518-580-5000