Message from the President:
Dear Proa Tribe,
We are happy to announce that, in consultation with the CNMI COVID-19 Task Force, Northern Marianas College will reopen its campuses on Monday, November 8. To ensure a safe reopening, please take note of the advisories below, which are summarized as follows:
- Supervisors are authorized to allow teleworking and/or continued virtual/online learning on a case-by-case basis through November 12.
- While on campus, please follow the College’s COVID-19 mitigation procedures and protocols.
- The College remains committed to keeping campus facilities clean.
- Help limit the spread of COVID-19 in our community.
- As this is an evolving situation, please stay informed through official sources.
Supervisors are authorized to allow teleworking and/or continued virtual/online learning on a case-by-case basis through November 12.
We understand that while the current community spread of COVID-19 is being contained, some members of our Tribe may still feel uneasy about returning to campus. In addition, since the CNMI Public School System will not reopen until November 15, some parents at the College may find it difficult to secure childcare for PSS students. For these reasons, supervisors are authorized to allow employees to telework and/or instructors whose courses are face-to-face or have face-to-face components to continue virtual/online learning from November 8 through November 12. Note that employees must secure approval from their respective supervisors in order to telework or continue with virtual/online learning, and students must await official notification from their instructors about any continuation of virtual/online learning.
While on campus, please follow the College’s COVID-19 mitigation procedures and protocols.
All employees and students must continue to follow COVID-19 mitigation procedures and protocols, including wearing face masks/covers, observing physical distancing, and washing or sanitizing hands frequently. All employees and face-to-face students are also reminded to get vaccinated as recently mandated.
The College remains committed to keeping campus facilities clean.
All College campus facilities, including classrooms and office spaces, have undergone deep cleaning and sanitation this past week. We will continue to ramp up cleaning activities throughout the next few days and weeks if necessary. Instructors and students are advised to refrain from moving classroom furniture around as they have been strategically placed to ensure adequate physical distancing.
Help limit the spread of COVID-19 in our community.
As always, note the following reminders/guidance to help limit the spread of COVID-19 in our community:
- If you are part of a contact tracing activity, please do not come to campus. Report this immediately to your supervisor and the Director of Human Resources.
- Vaccinate if you have not already. Visit vaccinateCNMI.com for more information.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
- Wear a face cover in public spaces and common areas.
- Stay at least 6 feet away from others.
- Stay home when you are sick.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.
- Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
- Rather than into your hand, cover your cough or sneeze with a bent elbow or handkerchief or into a tissue. Throw used tissue away immediately.
- Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
As this is an evolving situation, please stay informed through official sources.
The situation is dynamic and quickly evolving. The information we share today may need to be updated in days or perhaps hours. Some of the timelines we identify may need to be moved up depending on circumstances that emphasize student and employee safety and well-being. Ensure that you continue to monitor OFFICIAL sources with the latest information, including the NMC email and website, NMC social media platforms, the CHCC, and the Centers for Disease Control.
Our primary concern remains the health and safety of our students and employees. While we face this new outbreak in our community, I continue to have confidence in our team as we work together to identify and implement innovative and creative solutions and responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic. If you have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact your advisors or instructors if you are a student and the Human Resources Office if you are an employee.
More details and updates will be sent to students and employees through their official NMC email accounts. Students and employees are asked to monitor and check their email regularly. Also, for the latest updates, please visit NMC’s website at www.marianas.edu, or follow NMC on Facebook (@nmc.proa), Instagram (@nmc.proa), and Twitter (@GoProa).
As I often say, our proa has endured turbulent waters, but we continue to sail through it all, no matter what comes our way. And as we sail ahead with a focus on learning first, let us lift the tide for everyone.
Galvin Deleon Guerrero, EdD
NMC President