Student Testing Process: Winter Break/Spring 2021 Return

Published Nov 13, 2020 by
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Please read this entire communication as it includes vital information before you leave campus for the conclusion of Fall 2020, as well as information about the Spring 2021 return to campus process.

ECU Student Health Services is offering COVID-19 testing for students prior to leaving campus on Nov. 24, 2020. This testing is not required but is strongly encouraged by ECU as well as the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS) and American College Health Association (ACHA). The intention is to help reduce the spread of the virus as students are returning home between the fall and spring semesters.

Note: Students testing positive in the past 90 days can contact Student Health Services (SHS) for a consultation about exit testing.

Fall Exit Testing

ECU students will have the option of being tested starting Nov. 16-20, which will allow students time to receive their results prior to leaving campus and make appropriate plans. Testing will be conducted by Student Health Services (SHS) via drive-thru testing at the Main Campus Student Health Services location.

Residence hall students who test positive will be able to complete their isolation on campus before leaving. We also encourage students to quarantine for 14 days once they get home as suggested by the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS).

Students who stay in the residence halls for ECU intersession winter term and are also staying on campus for Spring 2021 will be tested by SHS on Monday Jan. 4, 2021. Students testing positive will move to an isolation space on College Hill until cleared to exit by SHS.

Residence hall students previously scheduled to be tested on Nov. 17 are required to test but won’t need a second test before leaving campus to conclude the fall semester.

For all other on-campus students not scheduled for Nov. 17 as well as any off-campus students wanting to participate in exit testing, the cost is the responsibility of the student, but SHS will file insurance on the student’s behalf. An appointment with Student Health Services is required and same day appointments will be available. To make an appointment, call 252-328-6841.

Enjoy Your Break — SAFELY

When traveling during the winter break, follow all CDC guidelines for travel and continue practicing the 3 Ws (Wear, Wash and Wait) to protect yourself and your family, friends and community. Each one of us has a responsibility to be safe and take proper precautions so that our actions don’t impact ECU’s ability to function in a face-to-face academic setting for Spring 2021.

While the holidays are a time when families and others gather together, you should be careful, particularly if gatherings include individuals at higher risk for severe illness (e.g., people over the age of 65 or who have underlying health conditions) and if there is an increasing or high number of cases in the community. Certain types of locations and events present greater risk for the spread of COVID-19. Higher risk settings include:

  • Indoor settings, especially with poor ventilation;
  • Places where people cannot socially distance;
  • Settings of activities that involve increased respiratory effort (e.g., singing, yelling, laughing, or exercising vigorously);
  • Places where people carry on extended face-to-face conversations; and
  • Settings where people remove their mask to eat or drink, and remain in one place, such as at bars and social gatherings.

If you will be attending a celebration during holiday break, follow the NCDHHS Guidance for Private Social Gatherings and Guidelines for a Safer Holiday Break.

  • Take precautions to protect your health.
  • Avoid high-risk settings.
  • Always practice the 3 Ws (Wear, Wait, Wash) whenever you go out.
  • If you leave home, bring extra cloth face coverings (do not share or swap with others), tissues and hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol whenever possible.
  • Get vaccinated for the flu if you have not already done so.

Spring 2021 Campus Living Reentry Testing

All students living in the residence halls in Spring 2021 will be required to submit a negative COVID molecular test prior to move-in. “Molecular test” is a test that looks specifically for the genetic material of the virus. This is the most reliable type of test for a person who is asymptomatic. Please ask your provider if the test you are getting is molecular test or an antigen test. Get 7 fast facts about the new spring testing plan here.

The test must be taken seven days (or less) prior to the students return to campus but may not be taken prior to Jan. 7, 2021. Students may be tested at SHS or by an outside provider. If a student is tested at an outside provider, they must provide proof of a negative molecular COVID test to ECU SHS prior to moving into the residence hall. Students are to submit their test results by uploading them into their MyPirateChart or submitting them via email to gotquestions@ecu.edu. Students must be cleared by ECU SHS personnel before they are able to move into the residence halls. After students submit a copy of their negative test results, SHS will provide a clearance letter to the student through secure message in their MyPirateChart. It is the responsibility of the student to present the clearance letter to Campus Living.

Students who have received a positive test result within the last 90 days will not need to be tested until that 90-day time frame expires. In this case, proof of the previous positive test must be submitted to ECU SHS for the move-in process.

This process applies to:

  • Students who lived in the residence halls in Fall 2020 and will remain in the halls for Spring 2021;
  • Students who lived at home/off-campus in Fall 2020 and are moving on campus to a residence hall for Spring 2021.

Additional Spring 2021 Testing Note

Students (on- and off-campus) will be expected and strongly encouraged to participate in campus-wide testing at the end of January 2021, approximately 7-10 days after the first day of classes to create an accurate baseline of campus testing data. Student Health Services will coordinate these testing dates and provide more information at the beginning of the academic year.

ECU will have additional information regarding Spring 2021 and the testing process in December. Please monitor your ECU email during the winter break for updates and additional information about the spring.

— from the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs