Please find important information below so that you can plan accordingly to comply with SUNY Poly’s Spring 2023 semester COVID-19 requirements.

All residential, commuter, and those students needing access to campus must follow all requirements below:   

Vaccination

• All SUNY Poly students with an on campus presence are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to the SUNY COVID-19 Vaccination Policy.
  • In order to be considered fully vaccinated for the initial course of vaccination, an individual must have received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson/Janssen vaccine, the two-dose Pfizer/BioNTech, Novavax, or Moderna vaccines, or other authorized vaccine series.
  • Individuals are considered fully vaccinated two weeks after receiving the course of vaccination. This mandate is in effect for any SUNY Poly student coming to any SUNY Poly campus or facility for any reason during the 2022-23 academic year.
  • Once a student receives their COVID-19 vaccination, they must submit proof to the Wellness Center, Suite 217 Campus Center, by fax: (315) 792-7371, or by emailing: wellnesscenter@sunypoly.edu. Proof of vaccination status should be provided prior to students coming to campus. Booster doses are strongly encouraged though not required at this time. Acceptable proof of vaccination includes: a picture or photocopy of the front of the vaccination card, immunization report, or a screenshot of an Excelsior Pass.
• Students may request an exemption from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement for medical or religious reasons. Any SUNY Poly student with a legitimate and documentable reason why they cannot receive the COVID-19 vaccine must submit an exemption request by January 9, 2022. To submit a medical exemption request, forms may be obtained by request from wellnesscenter@sunypoly.edu. Religious exemption forms are available upon request at studentaffairs@sunypoly.edu. New students or those with extenuating circumstances prohibiting them from submitting an exemption request by the deadline must notify Wellness (medical) or Student Affairs (religious) immediately. Students who fail to comply with the vaccination mandate or who did not receive an approved exemption will be subject to the SUNY Poly’s Student Code of Conduct (Community Standards Office).
  • Students without an exemption who choose not to get vaccinated against COVID-19 are permitted to enroll in online courses only (no in-person classes) and are not permitted to access any in-person campus activities or services. Only those remote and/or online courses already offered in that modality will be available for students who are not vaccinated and have not been granted an exemption through SUNY Poly’s process. In addition, students should be aware that the SUNY tuition and fee refund policy remains in effect for any student who refuses to be fully vaccinated and is not approved for an exemption.

Testing

• All students with an on-campus presence must attest to having received a negative COVID-19 test result from within 24 hours prior to arrival to campus; a negative antigen (at home) rapid test is acceptable.
  • A link to attest that you have completed and received a negative result from a rapid antigen test will be forwarded by Student Affairs just prior to the start of the semester.
• Rapid test kits will be made available to Utica students through the Wellness Center–Campus Center Office and to Utica employees through Human Resources–Kunsela Hall Office. Albany campus students and employees may obtain kits in the Presidential suite on the 4th floor of NanoFab East; students may also pick up tests kits in the NFS 3rd floor Student Services Suite. At this time, all health insurance plans provide several at-home kits per person per month at no cost from local pharmacies.
• Regular surveillance testing is not planned at this time during the Spring 2023 semester, but may be scheduled if conditions warrant it.

Masks

• The wearing of masks is optional unless notified otherwise.
  • The Wellness Center (due to elevated risk) requires masking by all who enter, work in common areas, or directly interact with patients.
• Individuals returning to campus activities following release from isolation will be expected to continue to wear an approved well-fitted mask until Day 10 after symptom start date or date of positive test, whichever is later.
• All individuals are expected to be considerate of others’ masking preferences as members of our caring community. Faculty and staff may require others to wear masks when in a small office/classroom/room where social distancing may not be possible, in support (for example) of individual or family health needs. All community members are reminded that accommodation procedures exist at SUNY Poly to account for individual needs:
  • Special consideration. Pursuant to the CDC, “A person with a disability who cannot wear a mask, or cannot safely wear a mask, because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.)” may submit a request to Student Accessibility Services at SAS@sunypoly.edu (students) and Human Resources at HR@sunypoly.edu (employees) for consideration of an exemption from mask wearing based on a medical accommodation, regardless of vaccination status. These individuals should be aware of the risk posed by not wearing a mask in certain situations, and should take extra precautions to protect themselves (e.g., social distancing).

100% Online Students

• If you are 100% online and will not be physically present on campus during the Spring 2023 semester for any reason (which includes office hours, working on campus, or to utilize services such as dining), you are required to complete this Fully Remote Attestation.

SUNY Poly - University at Albany Partnership
As a result of the SUNY Poly-University at Albany Partnership, SUNY Poly Albany campus residential students will also be required to follow the University at Albany’s requirements. Please find more information here: https://www.albany.edu/covid-19.

Out-of-State and International Students: The New York State Department of Health refers travelers to the CDC for any requirements, restrictions, or recommendations on domestic and international travel. For domestic travelers, the individual should research the requirements of the state / locality they are traveling to and follow all applicable requirements. For international travelers, the CDC website provides country-by-country breakdowns and expectations for travelers. The website also includes a listing of prohibited travel from certain countries.

International students who have been traveling out of state or internationally should follow up with International Admissions and Student Services at iss@sunypoly.edu to discuss individual circumstances.

We are excited to get the spring semester underway and continue our combined efforts to support your health and educational success; we will provide any updates on this webpage.
 

As federal, state, local, and SUNY health guidance changes due to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, SUNY Poly’s rules will also evolve as the institution receives new guidance and/or regulations are promulgated. SUNY Poly reserves the right to change its policy in regards to these matters and will provide updates as needed on the SUNY Poly website.