Comets Return to Campus Students Guide

Entering Buildings

Every entrance will have messages that Comets are united in wearing face coverings, using hand sanitizer and practicing social distancing.

Face Coverings

Face coverings will be required in the following areas:

• Hallways
• Restrooms
• Common spaces
• Elevators
• Front desks
• Office suites (masks not required in individual offices when guests are not present)
• Classrooms
• Study rooms
• Open and closed lounges

Face coverings will not be required in the following areas:

• Personal offices (unless more than one person is present)
• Personal suite living areas
• Private bedrooms
• Suite bathroom facilities
• Parking lots if social distancing is possible

Students who are unable to wear a face covering in accordance with the policy should contact the Dean of Students office (DOS) at [email protected]. The DOS will provide guidance regarding the process for submitting an exception request, and will review submissions to make a determination on a case-by-case basis. Documentation from the treating physician will be required for medical exceptions.

Using Elevators

Each elevator entrance will have a sign indicating social distancing capacity. If the elevator is large enough to allow more than one passenger, floor stickers will instruct where to stand. A sign that reminds people to maintain 6 feet of distance will be on the back wall of those elevators.

Restrooms

Signage encouraging hand washing is in all restrooms on campus.

Staff Screenings

Departments will use a daily self-evaluation process and require exception reporting. Staff will be required to self-isolate at home and/or work remotely as possible, following Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines to ensure the safety of all employees.

Dining On Campus

All dining venues on campus will provide food services when faculty, staff and students return to campus and no price increases for student meal plans will be made for this term.

Changes made to food services in consideration of social distancing requirements include:

• Dining Hall West: The all-you-care-to-eat facility will be open for breakfast, lunch and dinner each day; staff members will serve diners at each station, discontinuing the self-service format. To-go options will be available at the dining hall. Lunch hour serving times will be expanded. Approximately 300 seats will be removed from the dining area to support social distancing.
• Student Union Food Court: All food court venues will be open. Some of the venues will operate as mobile order with pickup at remote locations to reduce crowding during peak hours.
• Food Truck Park: Food trucks will be parked with more spacing between each other to also control crowding.
• Food Delivery Robots: Starship robots will be available for food service deliveries. Robots will be sanitized following each use before the subsequent delivery.

Retail Services

• UTD Bookstore: Open as usual for curbside pickup and drop off services until the University Visitor Center and Bookstore building is re-opened for in-person services.
• UTD Tech Store: Open as usual for pickup and drop off services until the University Visitor Center and Bookstore building is re-opened for in-person services.

Print Shop

The UT Dallas Print Shop is open and available for print orders; the Copy Shop University Visitor Center and Bookstore will reopen when students return to campus.