[Mathregionals] FW: Planning for Future Research Scenarios

[Eisworth, Todd]

Hi all,

Building on the urgency of the email I sent around last night.  We don't run labs like the other hard sciences, but we need to be prepared.

Best,

Todd


From: McCarthy, Brian <mccarthy at ohio.edu>
Sent: Thursday, March 19, 2020 10:15 AM
To: CAS Chairs and Directors <cas-dg-chairs-dirs at ohio.edu>
Cc: Plassmann, Florenz <plassmann at ohio.edu>
Subject: Fw: Planning for Future Research Scenarios

Chairs,
This just in. Please forward to your faculty and alert them that a full shutdown may be imminent. I have already been in contact with some of you regarding this issue (especially as it relates to live animal care and equipment maintenance).
Thank you,
Brian

Brian C. McCarthy, Ph.D.
Senior Assoc Dean and Prof of Forest Ecology
College of Arts & Sciences
Wilson Hall Admin, Room 200
1 Ohio University
Athens, OH  45701-2979  USA
T: 740-593-1615
M: 740-707-9017
E: mccarthy at ohio.edu<mailto:mccarthy at ohio.edu>

For latest information on COVID-19 <https://www.ohio.edu/coronavirus> @OHIO

________________________________




Thursday March 19, 2020



To: Ohio University Researchers

From: Joe Shields, Vice President for Research & Creative Activity



I am writing with guidance in relation to the current status of the COVID-19 pandemic.



At the present time faculty and staff have been directed to work remotely as much as possible in carrying out their activities.



Given the rapid growth of cases of COVID-19 infection, there is a strong probability that Ohio University will move into a deeper shutdown of research and other activities at the university.  Such measures have already been implemented at an increasing number of other institutions.



Faculty and Staff who are still using facilities on-campus should plan for this eventuality now.

In the case of such a shutdown, in-person activities on campus will be limited to those deemed essential based on

  *   Maintenance of living animals or other organisms to avoid major disruption of research
  *   Maintenance of major equipment that requires regular monitoring to avoid catastrophic failure



Faculty should work with their chairs and Associate Deans to identify activities meeting these criteria, and Associate Deans should forward their recommendations for any essential personnel to Joe Shields as soon as possible.   This communication should include

  *   Faculty/PI name and department
  *   Nature of the activity requiring on-site presence.  Include locations of activity, frequency and duration of visits, and names of specific individuals involved and their roles.
  *   Impact on research if personnel are unable to come to campus
  *   Description of steps to be implemented to minimize infection risk for essential personnel when on-site



Requests will be reviewed for approval by the Executive Vice President & Provost in consultation with the Vice President for Research & Creative Activity.



If the university leadership directs that a deep shutdown is in effect, all research personnel - including faculty, staff, and students engaged in research and creative activity - will be directed to work remotely and only essential personnel approved through this process will be allowed to access facilities on-campus.



Planning Considerations for Potential Shutdown



  *   Avoid starting any new projects on-site that can't be shut down on short notice



  *   Address safety issues related to long-term storage of chemicals or shutdown of equipment



  *   Work with Lab Safety to address other issues related to long-term suspension of activity.



  *   A ramp-down checklist that may be helpful can be found at the UC Berkeley website<mailto:https://vcresearch.berkeley.edu/research-continuity-planning-covid-19>.



  *   Address IRB and IACUC issues resulting from change of activity.



  *   Work with Lab Animal Resources to plan for long-term management of animals if appropriate.



  *   Work with your ORSP manager<mailto:https://www.ohio.edu/research/orsp/resources/grant-manager> on issues related to grant requirements, extensions, reporting, etc.



Please feel free to direct questions to our offices or to the university's Safety Department at safety at ohio.edu<mailto:safety at ohio.edu>.






-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://listserv.ohio.edu/pipermail/mathregionals/attachments/20200319/ea054d95/attachment-0001.html>