Updated April 13, 2021
Dakota County Technical College (DCTC) is committed to providing a safe and healthy environment for our students, employees, and community members. To ensure this, we continue to update this Back-to-Campus Preparedness Plan following the latest guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), federal COVID-19 OSHA standards, and Governor Tim Walz's executive orders, including Executive Order 20-40, Allowing Workers in Certain Non-Critical Sectors to Return to Safe Workplaces and Executive Order 20-81, Requiring Minnesotans to Wear a Face Covering in Certain Settings to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19.
DCTC will continue to use distance learning and support services where we can, and to encourage our non-essential employees to work remotely until federal and state guidance changes. Our goal is to continue our educational mission while mitigating the potential for transmission of COVID-19 on our campus. To that end, campus leaders, supervisors, employees, and students are responsible for implementing and complying with all aspects of this Plan.
This section will track updates to the DCTC Preparedness Plan that was initially published on June 2, 2020.
| Revision Date | Description |
|---|---|
| July 23, 2020 | Mandatory face covering requirements (Emergency Executive Order 20-81) |
| August 21, 2020 | COVID Self-Assessment Questionnaire |
| November 4, 2020 | COVID Alert Status Levels |
| December 14, 2020 | Close Contact guidance; new CDC quarantine guidelines; COVID Alert Level changes; COVIDaware MN App |
| April 13, 2021 | EO 21-11 updates (continued tele-working and venue limitation adjustments); MDH IHE Fall Semester planning recommendations |
The following components are addressed in this Plan:
New COVID guidance for Higher Education Institutions Executive Order 21-11 (issued on March 13, 2021, “Adjusting Limitations on Certain Activities and Taking Steps Forward”) was issued by the governor. This order eases restrictions previously in place in places of public accommodation. This includes educational, refreshment, entertainment, recreation or any institutions where accommodations, goods, services and facilities are made available to the public.
The following requirements are still in place for students, employees and contractors on campus:
DCTC's goal is to mitigate the potential for transmission of COVID-19 within our campus and community. Achieving this goal requires full cooperation among students, employees, and members of our campus community. To this end, and to provide a means of communicating COVID conditions on campus, DCTC, in conjunction with the Minnesota State System Office and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), has established a COVID Level Alert Dashboard.
The purpose of the COVID Level Alert Dashboard is to provide us with guidance in the event we need to scale back in-person operations if transmission increases.
The COVID Alert Levels are: Green (Scenario 1): Low Transmission; Yellow (Scenario 2): Medium Transmission; Orange (Scenario 3): High Transmission; Deep Orange (Scenario 4): Sustained Level of High Transmission in the Community; and Red (Scenario 5): Sustained High Level of Transmission in Institution. On August 19, 2020, the MDH recommended that colleges and universities should start their fall 2020 semester in yellow status.
The applicability of the safety color levels is determined by the President's Cabinet and is based on factors contained in this guidance from the Minnesota Department of Health along with advice from campus and local public health officials. A summary of the levels, corresponding actions, and some of the main indicators that inform the setting of the safety level can be found on the DCTC COVID Level Alert Dashboard website.
Pursuant to Executive Order 20-81, Requiring Minnesotans to Wear a Face Covering in Certain Settings to Prevent the Spread of COVID-19, as of Saturday, July 25, 2020, Minnesotans must wear a face covering in indoor businesses and indoor public settings, as described in this order and the related industry guidance, available at the Stay Safe Minnesota website (staysafe.mn.gov).
Types of face coverings can include a paper or disposable mask, a cloth mask, a neck gaiter, a scarf, a bandana, or a religious face covering. The face covering must cover the nose and mouth completely. The covering should not be overly tight or restrictive and should feel comfortable to wear.
Executive Order 20-81 also identifies a number of situations where a face covering may be temporarily removed, such as when a worker is working alone (for example, when in a closed office, a cubicle with walls above face height when social distancing is maintained, or other enclosed space with no other individuals present). In addition, if employee or student cannot wear a face covering due to a medical condition, mental health condition, or disability, a business must provide an accommodation to the worker if possible.
Employees and students have been informed of and encouraged to self-monitor for signs and symptoms of COVID-19. The following policies and procedures are being implemented to assess workers' health status prior to entering the campus and for employees and students to report when they are sick or experiencing symptoms.
To protect the health and safety of students and employees from the direct threat resulting from the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace to the extent reasonably possible, DCTC is requiring mandatory screening of all employees, students, contractors, and visitors prior to entering campus buildings for potential exposure to COVID-19 and symptoms of COVID-19.
Effective August 10, 2020, a new online COVID Self-Assessment Health Screening Questionnaire was deployed for all employees, students, and visitors. It is recommended that the Health Screening Questionnaire be completed prior to arriving on the DCTC campus. The Health Screening Questionnaire can be found at minnstate.edu/CV19-DCTC or by accessing the QR code provided on the DCTC COVID website. The QR code will also be posted at DCTC building entrances. DCTC entrances will also have a tablet kiosk available to complete the online form inside entrances for student, employee and visitor use if needed.
The Health Screening Questionnaire should take less than two minutes to complete. After completing the online form, you will receive an email approving your visit if you report no symptoms or exposure to COVID-19. Retain the email for verification purposes as you may be required to show this approval email while on campus.
If you report symptoms, have been in contact with a person with COVID, or have been contacted by the Dept. of Health, because of exposure to COVID, you will get a response on the online form that states that you are not authorized to come to campus for classes or work. You will not receive an email in this instance. Do not come to campus and follow safety protocol and health guidance.
Employees who refuse to complete the screening will not be admitted to the workplace, will be considered absent from work without approved leave during their regular assigned work time and may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge. Employees who are absent from work without approved leave in these circumstances will be placed in no-pay status. Employees who complete but do not pass the health screening are not authorized to enter the workplace and must report to their supervisor using their regular call-in procedure. Please see the COVID Self-Assessment Health Screening Operating Instructions for more information regarding telework, accrued sick leave, unpaid medical leave, and COVID-19 Leave options. Human Resources should be contacted with any leave questions.
Students will not be permitted to enter campus buildings if they do not complete and pass the screening. Students who refuse to complete the screening and persist in entering campus buildings may be subject to the DCTC student code of conduct and may be removed from campus.
Employees, students and visitors may need to show the approval email if requested by campus administration.
The Health Screening Tool provides the required Tennessen Notice.
All health-related information gathered from the health screening will be treated as private, will be stored securely, and will not be stored or maintained in an employee's individual personnel file, or in a student's official academic records. Health-related information gathered from the health screening will be maintained for at least one year.
Any Health Screening questions can be directed to COVID@dctc.edu
Students, employees, and visitors coming to the DCTC campus, even for a short duration, will be subject to a daily health questionnaire prior to face-to-face interactions.
Each student, employee, and guest will be asked if they are experiencing ANY of the following symptoms each time they enter campus. The questionnaire may be delivered via a web-based or a paper form.
If all of the above are no, the individual can enter campus including athletic fields. The individual will be required to wash or sanitize their hands prior to having any contact with others on campus.
If any of the above are yes, the individual will NOT be allowed to enter or participate in any on-campus activities including athletic programming and will be asked to return home. These individuals should then stay home until:
DCTC follows MDH and local health department guidance on informing workers if they have been exposed to a person with COVID-19 on campus and requiring them to quarantine for the recommended amount of time.
If an employee or student has tested positive for the virus with medical testing, they need to stay home and isolate for 10 days since the date of the positive test. This includes staying separated from other household members as much as possible. Employees must also report their situation to their supervisor. Students should report their situation to the Vice President of Student Affairs, Anne Johnson at 651-423-8281 or anne.johnson@dctc.edu.
If an employee contacts a supervisor or a student contacts a faculty or other college employee stating that they have a confirmed case of COVID-19, the college employee should ask the following questions:
When a case has been confirmed, MDH is notified, and they will follow up to see who else might have been exposed and to conduct any necessary contact tracing. The college may need to do their own contact tracing to assess quickly whether an individual in class or in an activity had any close contact with others or when there is a need to quickly assess wrap-around services.
MDH announced updated quarantine guidance on December 7, 2020. This guidance is on Close Contact. These updates are based on updated CDC Guidance that shortens quarantine in certain situations ("Options to Reduce Quarantine for Contacts of Persons with SARS-CoV-2 [COVID] Infection Using Symptom Monitoring and Diagnostic Testing, Dec. 2, 2020").
In general, a close contact means being less than 6 feet from someone for 15 minutes or more throughout a 24-hour period. However, even shorter periods of time or longer distances can result in spread of the virus. The longer someone is close to the person who has COVID-19, and the closer they are, the greater the chance the virus can spread.
If you have close contact with someone who has been told by a doctor, clinic or hospital that they have COVID-19:
Local public health authorities determine and establish the quarantine options for their jurisdictions. CDC currently recommends a quarantine period of 14 days. However, based on local circumstances and resources, the following options to shorten quarantine are acceptable alternatives.
In both cases, additional criteria (e.g., continued symptom monitoring and masking through Day 14) must be met and are outlined in the full text.
Quarantine is used to separate someone who might have been exposed to COVID-19 and may develop illness away from other people. Quarantine helps prevent spread of disease that can occur before a person knows they have the virus. Quarantine is intended to reduce the risk that infected persons might unknowingly transmit infection to others. It also ensures that persons who become symptomatic or are otherwise diagnosed during quarantine can be rapidly brought to care and evaluated. CDC recognizes that any quarantine shorter than 14 days balances reduced burden against a small possibility of increasing the spread of the virus.
Per MDH guidance, if someone is fully vaccinated and is exposed, they do not need to quarantine if ALL of the following are true:
Under Executive Order 20-81, people are required to continue to wear face coverings and continue to stay at least 6 feet away from others in certain public spaces, including on MN State campuses, and it does not include exemptions for vaccinated people.
The MDH has issued guidance for people who are starting to experience symptoms or who live in the same household as someone who thinks they have COVID-19:
Any employee, student, or guest who is on campus including athletic fields at DCTC and reports that they are sick or experiencing symptoms while they are on campus, will be isolated in a dedicated workplace area (e.g., nurse's office) until they can return home.
Prior to the scheduling of any on-campus meeting, event, or student service activity, the person convening the event must complete the following planning checklist and submit it to their supervisor in writing:
Supervisors will retain checklists for events, classes, gatherings, or student activities happening in their areas. Supervisor approval is required before the publication or promotion of any on-campus activity. The supervisor will communicate the event to appropriate leaders to ensure we have enough staffing to manage the entrance(s), health questionnaire administration/passage, and face mask wearing. This communication will occur prior to publication or promotion.
Employee and student health information is protected under FERPA and HIPAA privacy rules. If an employee is confirmed to have COVID-19 infection, the CDC advises that employers should inform fellow employees of their possible exposure WHILE maintaining confidentiality as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The employer should instruct fellow employees about how to proceed based on the CDC Public Health Recommendations for Community-Related Exposure.
To comply with the ADA and other laws that require confidentiality of medical data, agencies may not specifically disclose the identity of the infected person or provide any information that will allow others to identify the infected person, or provide any other confidential medical information.
The State of Minnesota recently released the COVIDaware MN App that notifies users if they have been near someone who tested positive for COVID-19 and who has the app.
If you test positive, you can use the app to anonymously notify anyone you’ve been near. It doesn’t collect any personal information or track your location. DCTC leaderships supports the efforts of the State of Minnesota and encourage our students, employees and visitors to download COVIDaware MN, so we can all stay safe and make informed decisions about our health.
Click here to learn more about COVIDaware MN online. Download the COVIDaware MN App from Google Play or the Apple App Store. Additional resources can also be found on the DCTC COVID website.
In alignment with Minnesota State and Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB), DCTC has implemented leave policies that promote workers staying at home when they are sick, when household members are sick, or when required by a healthcare provider to isolate or quarantine themselves or a member of their household.
Human Resources contacts any employee who is using any of the COVID-19 codes and provides instructions on submitting a Paid COVID-19 Leave Request Form. DCTC continues to follow the Governor's Executive Order, and for employees who can't telework or be reassigned or redeployed, paid COVID-19 Leave is available.
The revised COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy #1440 is based on the Emergency Sick Leave provision of the Families First Corona Virus Response Act (FFCRA). This new COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy provides every employee with a bank of 80 hours of paid leave that is available in the following circumstances:
There are some important differences in the amount of benefit available under the new COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy. Here are the benefits:
Total available paid leave time under the revised COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy #1440 is 80 hours for all forms of leave combined.
The new Expanded FMLA COVID-19 Leave Policy (EFMLA Policy) #1441 provides up to 12 weeks of Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) protected leave for employees who must be absent from work to care for the employee's child whose regular school or place of care has physically closed, or whose child care provider is unavailable due to reasons related to COVID-19 and there is no other suitable person available to care for the child. The EFMLA Policy provides for up to 10 weeks of partially paid leave. The first two weeks of leave under the EFMLA Policy are unpaid (but employees may be eligible for the emergency sick leave benefit under the revised COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy #1440 for this two-week period).
Compensation under the EFMLA Policy #1441 is as follows:
The use of EFMLA will run concurrently with FMLA and will be counted against the employee's regular FMLA leave balance.
Both the revised COVID-19 Paid Leave Policy #1440 and the EFMLA COVID-19 Leave Policy #1441 expire on December 31, 2020.
In addition, a policy has been implemented to protect the privacy of workers' health status and health information. Employee and student health information is protected under FERPA and HIPAA privacy rules. If an employee is confirmed to have COVID-19 infection, the CDC advises that employers should inform fellow employees of their possible exposure WHILE maintaining confidentiality as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The employer should instruct fellow employees about how to proceed based on the CDC Public Health Recommendations for Community-Related Exposure.
To comply with the ADA and other laws that require confidentiality of medical data, agencies may not specifically disclose the identity of the infected person or provide any information that will allow others to identify the infected person, or provide any other confidential medical information.
DCTC has reconfigured college spaces and expects handwashing basic infection prevention measures for all employees, guests, and students.
The DCTC COVID-19 website at https://www.dctc.edu/support-services/health-services/coronavirus/health-resources/ lists resources on how students, faculty, and employees can take action to prevent the spread of Coronavirus:
The DCTC COVID-19 website also lists additional health resources with links to the MDH, CDC and more.
Additional health services can be found on the DCTC COVID-19 website.
DCTC has reconfigured college spaces and expects respiratory etiquette for infection prevention for all employees, students, and guests.
DCTC will promote, encourage and expect all campus community members to follow the MDH Health and the CDC guidelines related to social distancing. Social distancing is being implemented on campus through the following engineering and administrative controls:
DCTC expects all campus community members to follow the MDH and CDC guidelines related to cleaning and disinfecting campus areas. This includes, but is not limited to the following:
At the conclusion of in-person, face-to-face activities, supervisors, students, and/or instructors are responsible to:
In line with guidance from the CDC, MDH and Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE), programs that are permitted to continue instruction during the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak should continue to practice social distancing, require masks, complete the required self-assessment health questionnaire, implement or continue cleaning protocols, and provide clear communication to students, employees, and guests about what will be required to participate in any in-person instruction.
Any college program classroom or outdoor space such as athletic fields that provides face-to-face learning will have social distancing requirements posted, and faculty will instruct students on social distancing requirements. Students will maintain a minimum distance of 6 feet apart and a mask or face covering must be worn. Only groups of 25 or fewer will be allowed in a classroom at one time. Study groups should also be kept small and never larger than 10 individuals.
In general, all students, employees, and guests are expected to:
Organizations wishing to rent space on campus will need to follow the same guidelines outlined in this Plan. The employee responsible for arranging the space rental will have responsibility for ensuring event organizers understand and follow the Plan's protocols. In addition to general campus guest expectations, event organizers will be expected to perform the following:
This plan has been certified by DCTC leadership and was shared and posted throughout the campus community on June 2, 2020. It will be updated as necessary. The plan is also available in PDF format.
Certified by:
Michael Berndt
President, Dakota County Technical College
