Updated campus COVID-19 masking guidance

Dear faculty, staff and students,

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that fully vaccinated people no longer need to wear a face covering or practice social distancing, except where required by federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance.

Chicago and Illinois will follow the new CDC recommendations, although masks will still be required in all health care settings and on public transportation.

Based on these new recommendations and on the advice of our own health care experts, we have updated the outdoor campus masking policy as follows, effective immediately:

• Individuals who are fully vaccinated are no longer required to wear masks outdoors on university property.
• Individuals who are not fully vaccinated are allowed to unmask outdoors on university property if traveling alone more than 6 feet from others.
• Masking indoors is still required, including in classrooms, except when alone in a private office or personal residence hall room, or when an individual has a medical condition, disability or other reason that prevents them from safely wearing a face mask.
• Scarves, bandanas and gaiters are not to be worn on the UIC campus when a mask is required, as they do not provide the same level of protection as a face mask.

We will also continue the following requirements:

• UIC Healthcheck and UIC Daily Pass with current COVID-19 saliva testing status.
• Mandatory COVID-19 saliva testing and contact tracing for all individuals participating in on-campus activities will remain in effect. However, following the anticipated transition to Phase 5, fully vaccinated individuals will not be required to participate in on-campus COVID-19 saliva testing. We will communicate additional details in the coming weeks.

If you have not been vaccinated, we encourage you to take advantage of the free, convenient vaccination appointments that are available on campus. For more information about COVID-19 vaccination at UI Health or to make an appointment, visit vaccine.uihealth.care. If you have any questions, please send an email to covidvaccine@uic.edu.

We will continue to monitor COVID-19 in our community and on our campus and be prepared to modify our approach if necessary, according to public health guidance. Thank you for your continued patience as we adjust to the next phase of recovery.

We are hopeful for the future and thankful for your commitment to keep each other and our campus safe.

Sincerely,

Michael Amiridis
Chancellor