No. Students will continue to receive the intensive academic, career, and personal support that is the hallmark of the LVC experience. LVC’s faculty and staff have refined online learning methods to ensure students receive the educational outcomes outlined in every course syllabus. Therefore, while room and board fees will be pro-rated, the tuition and comprehensive fee for the semester will remain the same as published.

Student accounts will be credited room and board for the time students are not authorized to live in campus residential facilities or use dining services. We will distribute refunds of any remaining credit balances after the close of the semester.

Complete this form by Sunday, Jan. 17, at midnight to request permission to return to campus before Feb. 12.

If you are approved to return to campus early and haven’t already completed your entry test, you will receive an email on Tuesday, Jan. 19, with instructions on requesting an entry test and creating a Quest account.

Students who have already taken an entry test and received negative results may return to campus early according to their approved early arrival date.

Classes will still begin on Feb. 1, but they will be delivered online only until Feb. 15. The academic calendar remains unchanged.

Dear Students and Families,

Given the continuing spread of COVID-19 and the presence of the new, more infectious strain in our region, we have decided to delay LVC’s in-person return to campus until Monday, Feb. 15. I’m sorry we can’t proceed as planned, but the good news is that our partners at Penn State Health, who advised us on this decision, have told us there is light at the end of the tunnel as caseloads are projected to decline and vaccinations become more available. I know we all miss being together on our beautiful campus, but we need to wait just a little while longer to protect our community and increase our chances of having the rest of the semester in-person.

You can hear updates and ask questions at a virtual information session for students and their families on Wednesday, Jan.20, at 7 p.m. (Password: GoValley)

 A few key points:

• Classes will still begin Feb. 1, but they will be delivered online only until Feb. 15. The academic calendar remains unchanged.
• Residential students will move back to campus Feb. 12–14 unless they have otherwise been authorized to return earlier. On Feb. 1, Caitlin Lenker will send a Sign-up Genius link for students to select a move-in slot.
• We have adjusted the entry testing timeline to account for the delayed return. If you have not already taken an entry test, you will receive an email on Monday, Feb. 1, with instructions for requesting a test kit and setting up an account with Quest Diagnostics. Students who have already taken an entry test and received negative results may return to campus early according to your approved arrival date.
• If you need to return to campus before Feb. 12, please complete this request form by Sunday, Jan. 17, at midnight. If you are approved to return to campus early and haven’t already completed your entry test, you will receive an email on Tuesday, Jan. 19, with instructions on requesting an entry test and creating a Quest account.
• Student-athletes will be notified by their coaches when to report to campus.
• Student accounts will be credited room and board for the time students are not authorized to live in campus residential facilities or use dining services. We will distribute refunds of any remaining credit balances after the close of the semester.
• The College continues to monitor the vaccine distribution process. We hope to learn soon about resources available to students. If you have the opportunity to get vaccinated now, please do so. Keep your vaccination records on-hand. We’re setting up a secure reporting database.
• As we have in the past, we ask that you quarantine at home 14 days before returning to campus, if possible.

You can find more information on the LVC Forward blog. Please email information@lvc.edu if you have any questions.

As always, wear a mask, stay distanced, avoid gatherings, and wash your hands often. The eventual end of this pandemic lies not only with vaccine distribution but with our continuing vigilance.

For ourselves. For each other.

All my best,

President MacLaren

Residential students will move back to campus Feb. 12–14 unless they have otherwise been authorized to return to campus before then. Caitlin Lenker will send a Sign-up Genius link Feb. 1.

Request to return to campus before Feb. 12. Complete by Sunday, Jan. 17, at midnight.

Note: All students and employees who plan to be on-campus for the Spring 2021 semester must be entry tested. This includes commuting students.

Employees will receive an email to request a test and set up an account with Quest on Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Students who have been approved to return to campus before Feb. 12 will receive their entry testing request email Tuesday, Jan. 19.

Students who have not already taken an entry test will receive an email to request a test and set up an account with Quest on Monday, Feb. 1.

Instructions

• Click the URL in the email to request your test.
• Register using the personal information you use for your LVC student or employee account (no nicknames, etc.). Use the last seven digits of your student ID number, which you can find on your LVC ID card.
• Request a test immediately upon reviewing the email.

After you register, Quest will FedEx your kit to the mailing address on file with LVC. Please take your test as soon as you receive it. Return it in the provided FedEx packaging to the nearest FedEx location/FedEx dropbox. Do this the same day you take the test, and deposit it in a FedEx box before 3 p.m. Do not deposit your test in a FedEx box on a Saturday or Sunday. | Find your nearest FedEx dropbox.

The test is an Active Infection Swab Test that determines whether you have an active COVID-19 infection. This self-administered PCR test uses an Anterior Nares Nasal Swab and is the least invasive swab test available. You must send your test via FedEx back to Quest Diagnostics immediately. Quest will provide additional collection instructions in the kit. After you return your test to Quest, Quest will notify you of your results. You will receive an email prompting you to sign in to MyQuest to view your results. Check your junk or spam folder in case the email appears there.

If your entry test is negative, you may return to campus. Residential students should still self-quarantine for two weeks before their arrival.

If your entry test is positive, do not return to campus or attend any LVC-related activities. You will be able to return to campus 10 days after your test date if you have had no new or worsening symptoms. LVC will contact you regarding isolation and requirements for returning. Students who cannot return to campus until after classes start should let their professors know you will begin classes remotely.

If you have been vaccinated, you are still required to participate in entry and census testing, per the guidance of our healthcare partners.

The vaccine will not produce a positive result on testing done with nose, mouth, or saliva samples, but if you receive a blood test to check for antibodies, that may potentially be positive.

Colleagues,

Lebanon County has announced its Covid-19 phased vaccination plan. Education employees have been assigned to the 1B essential employee category. If you are interested in registering as an educator, please follow the instructions on the following link https://www.lcdes.org/vaccinate/. 

A human resources representative will serve as your supervisor to confirm employment. Please list Rachel Brunner or me as your employer representative.

• Ann Hayes, sr. director of human resources, 717-867-6416
• Rachel Brunner, associate director of human resources, 717-867-6414

Please also feel free to reach out to us with questions.

All the best, 

Ann 

Ann C. Hayes, MPA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Senior Director of Human Resources and Title IX Coordinator

If your entry test is negative, you may return to campus. Residential students should still self-quarantine for two weeks before their arrival.

If your entry test is positive, do not return to campus or attend any LVC-related activities.

You will be able to return to campus 10 days after your test date if you have had no new or worsening symptoms. LVC will contact you regarding isolation and requirements for returning. Students who cannot return to campus until after classes start should let their professors know they will begin classes remotely.

Note: Residential students must self-quarantine in addition to taking a re-entry test Receiving a negative re-entry test still requires self-quarantining to prevent an early outbreak on campus.  

Due to the widespread and sustained rates of COVID-19, all residential students should self-quarantine for 14 days before returning to campus for the Spring 2021 semester. The College defines self-quarantining as staying at home and not interacting with anyone except the members of your household. Quarantining includes not going to your place of work and not socializing with friends or family outside of your immediate household. The other members of your household may go to work but should be diligent about wearing a mask, hand washing, and physical distancing to help maximize your quarantine efforts. 

Students who have work or other, non-social obligations that prevent them from completing a full 14-day quarantine prior to arriving on campus should email information@lvc.edu. Students unable to quarantine due to social or family events should plan to delay their arrival in order to meet the 14-day requirement and also email information@lvc.edu with additional details on their expected arrival date.

On the day you are assigned to move in, if you are experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms or have had a known, close exposure to a COVID-19-positive person in the past 14 days, do not come to campus. Instead, contact a healthcare provider for further guidance and alert information@lvc.edu that you will not be arriving as scheduled for move-in.

Complete the symptom tracker with the appropriate symptoms or exposure details and contact health services with further questions (717-867-6232). If you are unable to move in on your assigned date due to COVID-19 symptoms or are under self-isolation or self-quarantine, start your classes online. Notify your professors  and registrar@lvc.edu.

Pennsylvania Orders & Guidance

• Secretary of Health’s Mitigation and Enforcement Order
• Secretary of Health’s Stay at Home Advisory
• Secretary of Health’s Mitigation Relating to Travel (Nov. 17)
• Department Of Health Updated Travel Order (Nov. 25)
• Preliminary Guidance for Resuming in-Person Instruction at Postsecondary Education Institutions and Adult Education Programs

CDC Guidance

• When to Quarantine
• Colleges, Universities, & Higher Learning
• Consideration for Institutes of Higher Education

LVC Policies & Protocols (in ADP)

• Employee Exposure to COVID-19 Response
• Guidance and Expectations for Working on Campus During COVID-19
• Pandemic and Communicable Disease Policy

Athletics Guidelines & Updates

• NCAA Core Principles of Resocialization of Collegiate Sport
• Middle Atlantic Conference

All students must have completed a personal Student Emergency Plan to identify considerations if the College needs close residence halls, along with a COVID-19 Addendum. You must complete these documents before returning to your campus residence. If you completed both documents before the fall 2020 semester, nothing else is required unless you have updates to your emergency plan. To access the form, click on the “MyInfo for Students” link in MyLVC and sign in. Once on the student’s page, in the MANAGE MYINFO section, click the “Student Emergency Plan” link.

Dear Campus Community,

We continue to work through the details of our return to in-person learning and residence for the spring semester. Our healthcare partners advise us that COVID-19 cases will likely continue to rise, peaking in mid-January just before we planned to re-open campus. Therefore, we have adjusted the Spring 2021 academic calendar and pushed back the opening by one week.

Classes will now begin Monday, Feb. 1. An outline of the calendar is below. Commencement and summer session dates have not changed. Over the break, we’ll send details about move-in to residential students and other information as we prepare for the start of the semester.

My best wishes to you and yours this holiday season. 

President MacLaren

Revised Spring 2021 Calendar

Monday, Feb. 1: Classes Begin 

Thursday, April 1: Classes End 5 p.m. for Easter Break

Tuesday, April 6: Classes Resume 

Friday, May 14: Semester Classes End 

Monday, May 17–Friday, May 21: Final Exams 

Sunday, May 23: Commencement 

7-Week Term Session/Graduate & Professional Studies Calendar

Spring I: Feb. 1–March 21

Spring II: March 29–May 16

Summer I: May 24–July 11

Summer II: July 12–Aug 29

The College will consult with healthcare partners and public health agencies to evaluate criteria for closing campus and moving courses entirely online. 

If campus housing opens late or close early, room and board charges are calculated at the end of the semester based on each student’s number of days in residence. Any credits will be applied by the end of the semester. For the fall semester, credits will be carried over to offset charges in the spring. For the spring semester, credits will be refunded to students after the semester ends. If the semester is partially or fully online, LVC will not refund tuition. The semester will be different from a typical semester, but students will continue to receive the intensive academic, career, and personal support that is the LVC experience’s hallmark. Therefore, while room and board fees will be pro-rated, the tuition and comprehensive fee for the semester will remain the same as published.

Student on-campus employees should follow the same protocols and policies required for LVC’s faculty and staff. Students working off-campus should wear masks and follow all hygiene guidance from the CDC, Pennsylvania, and their employers.

The fitness center and pool will be open on a first-come, first-served basis with limited capacity for LVC students, faculty, and staff. You must reserve spaces in the arena. Community members who are not students, faculty, or staff may not enter the Arnold Sports Center.

LVC highly encourages residential students to remain on campus during the academic year. The spread of COVID-19 can take place anywhere groups congregate, including within families and households. We strongly advise students against visiting families and friends, leaving campus to attend social events, or visiting other colleges and universities. 

• The College will reconfigure dining spaces to allow for physical distancing in seating configurations. Additional takeout options are being considered.
• All diners must wear face masks or coverings while in a dining space. Wear a mask while moving around the dining facility and remove it only when sitting and eating.
• Self-serve food options are not available in the primary dining hall; dining services staff will prepare and serve meals. Beverage dispensers are cleaned regularly.
• The meal exchange option has been expanded to other venues on campus, and takeout options are available. The main dining hall will serve kosher, vegetarian, and vegan options. 
• Takeout service is encouraged, as is alternative or outdoor seating during peak dining service hours.
• All dining staff must always wear face masks and gloves while working and interacting with the public. 
• Dining services staff must follow infection prevention guidelines, including staying home when ill; practicing physical distancing whenever possible at work; practicing proper hand hygiene; avoiding touching the eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands; cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces throughout the workday; and undergoing temperature checks before shifts.

Commuting students can take advantage of a variety of spaces for studying between classes and activities. Register your vehicle with public safety. You can park in the Green Lots (Summit Street along the railroad tracks) and Mund College Center parking lot. Overflow parking is available in the North parking lots. 

All employees must follow the workplace expectations and guidelines emphasized in LVC’s Guidance and Expectations for Working on Campus During COVID-19, Employee Exposure to COVID-19 Response, and Pandemic and Communicable Disease Policy found in ADP.

Faculty members who need accommodations to teach online because of their underlying health conditions, because they live or care for someone in a high-risk COVID-19 category, or because of another circumstance should contact Rachel Brunner, benefits and HRIS specialist (brunner@lvc.edu; 717-867-6414). Human Resources will coordinate with Provost Cowart to evaluate accommodation requests. 

Employees seeking accommodations should contact Rachel Brunner.  Given the fluid circumstances of the pandemic, instructors must request accommodations on a semester-by-semester basis. If your circumstances change mid-semester, contact Rachel Brunner.