News and announcements from Skidmore College

Weekly Bulletin

COVID-19 Updates

Indoor masking requirement on campus

As of Saturday, Aug. 7, the COVID-19 transmission rate in Saratoga County has moved from "substantial" to "high," as classified by the Centers for Disease Control. In the wake of this development, the College is now requiring a return to indoor masking for everyone, regardless of vaccination status.

For details regarding current protocols, please review this message shared with the community on Tuesday.

Fall vaccination requirement for faculty and staff (now including union)

To prevent or significantly reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 at Skidmore College and protect all members of the College community from infection, all new and current faculty and staff (union and non-union) will be required to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 3, 2021, unless exempted from this requirement as a reasonable accommodation of a medical condition or sincerely held religious belief.

Evidence of full vaccination, unless granted an exemption or leave of absence, must be submitted by Sept. 3. Details of the policy and links to required forms were emailed to all employees on July 30 and can be found here.

IMPORTANT: Those employees who have already submitted proof of vaccination to Human Resources via email must also complete this new process, as announced on July 30, as well. Please complete the COVID-19 Vaccination Submission Form and upload proof of vaccination.

Additional information can also be found in policy FAQs posted to the Campus Planning webpage.

Skidmore News

Video: Computer coding meets the classics

Associate Professor and Chair of the Classics Department Dan Curley and Nicky Kiernan ’21 have teamed up to develop a computer-based, historical adventure game for use in introductory Latin courses — an example of creative, cross-disciplinary learning experiences at Skidmore.

Dining Services

Please visit the Dining Services website regularly for updates, specials, hours of operation (including new summer hours), information about summer policies and other information.

Pop-up Grill: Dining Services is hosting its pop-up grill Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The grill features hamburgers, hot dogs, plant-based burgers, and more on the walkway outside Burgess Café. The week of Monday, Aug. 23, the grill will be held on Porter Plaza, which adjoins The Spa, and for that week only it will be offered through Friday, Aug. 27. A $7 lunch combo meal includes your choice of a grill item, two sides, and a beverage. A la carte pricing is also available. The grill is available to the entire Skidmore community. Pay inside Burgess Café and come out to the grill, where the crew will take care of you. Credit/debit card and Skidmore Card are accepted for payment.

Burgess Café is also offering novelty ice cream to help beat the heat.

The Spa is scheduled to reopen Monday, Aug. 23.

Human Resources

Free one-on-one retirement consultations with TIAA-CREF

TIAA is offering one-on-one retirement counseling sessions for Skidmore College employees on Wednesday, Aug. 18, and Wednesday, Sept. 15. All appointments will be scheduled as phone consultations; there will be no in-person meetings due to the spread of COVID-19. Call 1-800-732-8353 to schedule an appointment or visit the TIAA website.

Free one-on-one retirement consultations with Vanguard

Vanguard is offering one-on-one sessions for Skidmore College employees on Tuesday, Aug. 24, and Monday, Sept. 13. All appointments will be scheduled as phone consultations; there will be no in-person meetings due to the ongoing pandemic. You can sign up for an appointment with a representative over the phone by visiting the Vanguard website and selecting New York/Skidmore College/Saratoga Springs/One-on-one sessions.

Return to Campus Policy

The College has begun a phased return to campus of all staff who have been working remotely, in accordance with division and unit plans created as part of the College’s Return to Campus Policy. A full return to on-campus work is expected by Sept. 2, 2021.

While the College looks forward to welcoming remote employees back to campus, the College also acknowledges that this will be a transition that involves mixed emotions for many employees. Human Resources is available to provide support, answers to your questions, and resources during this transition period. Employees may also speak confidentially to a support professional from the College's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) by calling 518-793-9768 or 1-800-734-6072.

Employee COVID-19 Information

Reminder to Report Your COVID-19 Vaccination Status

All new and current faculty and staff (union and non-union) will be required to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 3, 2021, unless exempted from this requirement as a reasonable accommodation of a medical condition or sincerely held religious belief. Evidence of full vaccination, unless granted an exemption or leave of absence, must be submitted by Sept. 3. Details of the policy and links to required forms can be found here.

The information submitted through the COVID-19 Vaccination Status form and vaccination records will be maintained confidentially by Human Resources. If you have any questions regarding this process, please direct them to Interim Director of Human Resources Sarah Delaney Vero.

Protocol for employees who test positive for COVID-19 or are exposed to a positive COVID-19 case

Any employee, regardless of vaccination status, who tests positive for COVID-19 must not come on campus to work and should stay home until it is safe for them to be around others. You may return to work after:

• 10 days since symptoms first appeared and
• 24 hours with no fever without the use of fever-reducing medications and
• Other symptoms of COVID-19 are improving.

Unvaccinated employees who are exposed to a positive COVID-19 case and who are required to quarantine by order of the Department of Health should provide a copy of their quarantine order to their supervisor.

Employees who can work remotely should do so during their isolation or quarantine period. Employees who cannot work remotely may be eligible for paid time off during their isolation or quarantine period and should contact Human Resources for additional information.

Vaccinated employees who are exposed to a positive COVID-19 case and who show no symptoms of COVID-19 are not required to quarantine. The CDC recommends fully vaccinated employees should get tested three to five days after their exposure, even if they do not have symptoms and wear a mask indoors in public spaces for 14 days following exposure or until their test result is negative.

Fall surveillance testing

Updated surveillance testing requirements will be announced by the College soon.

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 and who are not fully vaccinated. Non-vaccinated new hires should be tested within 72 hours of their first day of work on campus.

Paid Time Off for Vaccine Appointments During Work Hours

Skidmore recently announced that all new and current faculty and staff (union and non-union) will be required to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 3, 2021, unless exempted from this requirement as a reasonable accommodation of a medical condition or sincerely held religious belief. 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.)

Skidmore Spotlight

Meet Daquan Pontoon

Daquan Pontoon is a campus safety officer and currently works the crucial overnight shift, which provides a variety of essential services while many College offices are closed at night. 

Faculty-Staff Achievements

Click here for details about the achievements below.

Jordana Dym, professor of history, co-authored an article in the journal Word & Image. Read more >> 

Tillman Nechtman, professor and chair of history, was interviewed by News 10 ABC. Read more >> 

Oscar A. Pérez, associate professor of Spanish, co-edited a special issue of the journal Latin American Literary Review and also published an article in it. Read more >> 

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

Announcements

International Friendship Family Program is recruiting

Student Academic Services is recruiting new and returning International Friendship Family Program (IFFP) hosts for the fall. Moving forward, host families will be limited to Skidmore faculty and staff. Even just a little of your time, knowledge, and friendship would make a huge difference in the lives of our newest international students. To become a returning or new host, please complete this sign-up form and return it to Chloe Jaleel or feel free to direct questions to her as well.

Authentication through Okta

IT will be changing all its application authentication to Okta. You will soon see a new logon screen when you log on to Office 365, Zoom, the Spring, and Box. Please note: You do not need to go to Okta to access these applications. The current links you have will redirect you to the proper logon page. The tiles in Okta are for your convenience but are not required.

Office 365 no longer uses POP or IMAP protocols. Windows 10 users can use the following Microsoft-supported applications: Outlook for Office 365, Outlook 2016/2019, and Mail for Windows 10. Mac OS users can use the macOS 10.14 mail app (or later) and Outlook for Mac. IOS users can use Mail for iOS 11.3.1 (or later) and Outlook for iOS; Android users can use Outlook for Android or the Gmail app. Linx platforms should use Outlook on the web. Feel free to contact the IT Help Desk with any questions.

Gore Mountain season pass discounts

Gore Mountain season pass discounts for the 2021-22 season are available to all Skidmore employees. There is also a growing list of value-added deals and discounts. To apply, fill out this application by Aug. 18. For more information, contact Carol Schnitzer.

EMS open for fall semester

Ready to reserve space on campus for your fall events and meetings? EMS is now open for the fall semester. For questions about scheduling, contact Megan Bove in the Scheduling Office. Training documentation is also available on the Scheduling Office website.

Hiring in Sustainability Office for fall

The Skidmore Sustainability Office seeks to build programs that are good for people and planet. We are hiring organized and passionate students who want engaging, hands-on jobs this fall. Open positions include a sustainable workplace manager to cultivate exciting and meaningful programming for staff and faculty, and a compost manager to support the residential composting program, which transforms 10,000 pounds of food waste per year into rich compost. Applications are now accepted. Interviews will be held on rolling basis, and positions start Sept. 8. See application instructions and details on our website. Please contact Jen Natyzak for more information. Please share with students who may be interested.

New Work Order Ticketing System: Maximo

Skidmore rolled out a new system for managing Facilities work orders, Maximo, on Tuesday, July 27. This new system will improve efficiencies, as Facilities staff will have real-time access to review and update work orders. The information needed from Skidmore community members for work orders is unchanged, but an enhanced feature for communicating a work order’s status will be added. Click here to access the Maximo system. Find instructions on how to enter a work order here, or watch this video. This information and more can be found on the Facilities Services webpage. Please contact Facilities Services if you have any questions.

Upbeat on the Roof with Sun is Poison

Join us at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 12, for a performance by Sun is Poison on the lawn outside the Tang. A lo-fi solo project of Ballston Spa’s Will Seifart, Sun is Poison creates immersive works that meld the mechanical sounds of drum machines and synths with banjos, guitars, and honest and poignant lyrics. Sun is Poison will be making its Upbeat debut. Visitors are invited to bring picnic blankets, camping chairs, and their own food and drink to make it a night! In case of inclement weather, the concert will be canceled. Contact Olivia Cammisa-Frost with any questions.

Family Saturday: Jazz it Up!

Join us for Family Saturday: Jazz it Up! on Saturday, Aug. 14. The 90-minute, in-person event for children 5 and older and their parents, grandparents or other guardians features a close-looking exercise at Ouattara Watts’ “Wait Until Tomorrow” and jazz musician Sun Ra’s album covers, an art-making activity, and a moment to share new creations. There are two sessions at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Space is limited and reservations are required. For more information and how to make reservations, visit the Tang website. For questions, contact Sunny Ra, the Laurie M. Tisch Educator for K-12 and Community Programs at the Tang.

Tang at Home Studio: Colorful Music

Join us for Tang at Home Studio: Musical Abstraction on Sunday, Aug. 15, at 11 a.m. This hour-long online event features discussions about Ouattara Watts’ “Wait Until Tomorrow” and jazz musician Sun Ra’s album covers — all conducted via Zoom. Reservations required. For more information and to register, visit the Tang website. For questions, contact Sunny Ra, the Laurie M. Tisch Educator for K-12 and Community Programs at the Tang.

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, Aug. 18. 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.

Scribner Library Book Club

Our non-traditional book club encourages attendees to “show and tell” a book they’ve read with the group. Please check our page for more info. The book club will be meeting from noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 18, on the Adirondack chairs outside Scribner Library. We will follow any health and safety guidelines that are in place at the time of each meeting. Hannah Matecko-Conti is happy to field any questions, but please feel free to simply show up.

Defensive Driving Course

The Department of Campus Safety has scheduled a two-day, six-hour classroom-based Defensive Driving Course (sponsored by the National Safety Council) from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday, Aug. 23, and Tuesday, Aug. 24, in Tisch 208. The course is open to students, employees, faculty, spouses, significant others, and family members. Participants must hold a valid driver's license or learner’s permit. The cost is $35. Class size is limited. Please contact Lori Parks or Kelly Simons if you are interested in attending.

Athletics News

Several Skidmore athletes and teams were recently recognized for academic achievements by their respective coaching organizations. Ice hockey, women’s lacrosse, and women’s tennis were honored over the past two weeks, joining earlier summer honorees from volleyball, men’s and women’s swimming and diving, and men’s lacrosse.

Skidmore Shop

Apple’s back-to-school promo is here! Now through Sept. 27, you can buy a Mac and get your AirPods free at the Skidmore Shop. Combined with Skidmore’s interest-free tech loan, you can own 2021’s best tech. Check out the Shop’s selection of Apple products. Please contact Doug Chang (518-580-5491) for more information.

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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