February 11, 2021 

Dear students,

On Monday, the second phase of the arrival quarantine will end and phase three will begin, allowing you to move around campus more freely. Thank you for your patience and cooperation during these opening days. Your efforts have gone a long way toward reducing the risk of infection at a time when infection rates have risen so sharply around the world and here in New Haven. Still, those rates are high in the Yale community, much higher than they were at the start of last semester, so for the weeks and months ahead you should expect that significant public health requirements will be part of everyday life.

One of those requirements, new this semester, is for registering indoor on-campus gatherings with more than seven people. (No gatherings can exceed ten people, indoor or out, on or off campus.) Registering will enable the Public Health Coordinators to call or text so that they can work with you if your gathering is getting too large or putting the community at risk. Just as important: any unregistered gathering with more than seven people will be shut down automatically by Yale Security and referred to the Compact Review Committee. Registration is easy; you can do it here. You can also find more details about it on Yale College’s FAQ page. Gatherings will be permitted starting Monday morning, and the registration site is open now.

By the same token, the public health conditions call upon each of us to take action if we see a gathering that is problematic. You can always communicate directly with the host of an event -- this is okay and expected -- but you can also call the PHCs as well. Their number is 203-737-1414. The PHCs, in their role as educators, can talk to a host and help them address any public health violations at their gathering. If you have other concerns about behavior you are seeing and think the Office of Student Affairs should follow up, you can always use the Community Concern form. Incidents will be referred to the Compact Review Committee only for repeated or serious violations; in most cases, the concerns can be addressed with a supportive, educational conversation.

On Monday morning, when phase three begins, other restrictions will relax partially for students enrolled in residence.

• If you live on campus, you will be able to leave your college or other residential space. You will also be able to host other on-campus students in your suite, and visit classmates in their suites. You will be able to eat in your dining hall, or continue to pick up grab-and-go meals. You will still be expected to remain on campus and not to interact yet with the City of New Haven or the surrounding community. 
• If you live off campus, you will not be able to enter the colleges or other residential spaces except for your twice-weekly viral tests, but you will have access to some other parts of campus. 
• Whether you live on campus or off, you will have access to the libraries and Payne Whitney Gymnasium. If you are taking an in-person class, working at an in-person campus job, or doing research in a lab, you will be able to begin your in-person components. 
• Remember, of course, that you still need to wear face coverings and maintain social distancing whenever you are outside your suite or off-campus housing, and whenever you host guests in your common areas. 

Although the third phase of the arrival quarantine will give you more freedom, I recognize that its requirements still limit your movements. I know you understand that those requirements are meant to reduce the risk of infection. But I hope you also understand that they are what enables us to come together as a residential academic community at this time of extraordinary viral spread. Even more than last semester, this is a time when it is essential  that we all work together.

Sincerely,

Marvin M. Chun 
Dean of Yale College  Richard M. Colgate Professor of Psychology; Neuroscience; Cognitive Science