home_outline/Info/COVID-19 Operations

Summer 2021 Operations Plan

Following guidance from the University and the College, we’ve built an operations plan that balances normalcy with safety. The NERS Re-entry Team (Todd Allen, Rob Blackburn, Besnik Topulli, and Sara Norman) will be continuously checking in with the University and the College, and reassessing this plan to determine if any restrictions need to be reevaluated.

ResponsiBlue Screening Check

Before entering a U-M building or property, take the health screening check.

U-M Campus Maize & Blueprint

Join others in following these safety measures to protect the community.

CoE COVID-19 Resources

The College of Engineering has gathered a range of resources to help guide operations.

Additional NERS Info

Emergency Contacts, Room Access and Capacity Information, and Operating Procedures (U-M Access Only)

IMPORTANT: NERS students, faculty, and staff who report to campus—we are counting on you to follow these guidelines:

Daily ResponsiBLUE Screening Check

Everyone: take the ResponsiBLUE Screening Check using the website or the app before entering a U-M building or property. Before entering a NERS space, take a screenshot of your results and save it for random spot-checking.
Visitors and vendors: use the guest version of ResponsiBLUE app whenever you come to campus and show it to the host when asked. The app will ask if you are fully vaccinated. If you answer yes, you are not required to wear a mask (unless in a classroom or on public transportation). If you answer no or choose not to answer, you will need to wear a mask.
The screening check results are valid for 18 hours. Unless you are on campus for longer than 18 hours, you only need to complete the screening check once each day that you report to campus.

Re-entry Checklist

Undergraduate, graduate, and professional students: All undergraduate, graduate, and professional students who live, work on, or enter campus buildings are required to complete weekly mandatory COVID-19 testing through the university. Fully vaccinated students who have reported their status are exempt from mandatory testing requirements for spring/summer terms.
Faculty, staff, postdocs, and graduate students: before your first time coming to campus after August 2020, complete whichever of these two training modules that you prefer: COVID 19: Working Safely in U-M Research Areas or COVID-19: Working Safely at U-M.
All students: please review the “Pre-Arrival Information” from the University.

Health/Safety

In case of emergency, contact, U-M Division of Public Safety and Security (DPSS) at (734) 763-1131. Additional emergency contacts can be found here.
Follow the University face mask policy. (Do I Need to Wear a Mask? Flowchart)
You can self-report your vaccine status here.
Unless you have reported your vaccine status, follow 6-foot social distancing guidelines and pay attention to distance markers on the floor.
Michigan Medicine COVID-19 Vaccination Planning FAQs
If you feel sick, stay home and away from others, and alert your instructor/supervisor.
If you think you have been exposed to/have COVID-19 in the last 14 days, follow these directions from the University and notify Besnik Topulli.
Use the U-M COVID-19 hotline (734-936-7000) for resources and support during the pandemic. The hotline provides a triage structure that allows community members to reach the appropriate unit based on their COVID-19-related needs and follows the recommendation of the Campus Health Response Committee.
Information from the University about testing can be found here.
Information from the University about travel can be found here.
Follow these COVID-19 Guidelines for Academic Facilities.
Follow these general cleaning guidelines.
If reasonable ADA accommodation is needed to follow the guidelines laid out in the operations plan, contact Besnik Topulli.
Report public health concerns by calling the COVID-19 Concerns Reporting Line at 734-647-3000.
Additional health and safety information can be found here.
Health/safety questions: Besnik Topulli (NERS Department Administrator)

Building Access

You will need your Mcard to enter any CoE building. All CoE faculty, staff, and students will have 24-hour access to CoE buildings. Non-CoE persons have access to CoE buildings Monday–Friday, 7am–midnight, except holidays and season days.
The Cooley Building has designated entry and exit points. When using the front door, follow the signage for entry/exit.
Room Access Information.
Access questions: Rob Blackburn (NERS Facilities Manager)

Designated Common Areas

NEL King Collaboratory is. open as a student study space.
Meetings Spaces: The Cooley Baer Room, Cooley Small Conference Room, and the NEL Cohn Room are available for student/staff/faculty meeting use. To reserve a room, contact Jennifer and provide the date/time and a list of the people you plan to invite. Hold the meeting only during your reserved time. Wipe down the tables after with the provided cleaning supplies. After your meeting, send Jennifer a list of everyone who attended.
Learn about the designated common areas for studying and eating provided by the University and CoE here.
Graduate student and postdoc offices are open.
The Cooley Student Lounge is open.
Designated Common Area questions: Rob Blackburn (NERS Facilities Manager)

Front Office

The front office is open Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday, from 10am–2pm to answer general questions and receive packages.
Instructions for shipping to the front office can be found here.
In order to support our remote workforce during this continuing pandemic, Procurement Services is temporarily allowing some additional flexibility to ship items to non-University addresses without requiring an exception waiver for every purchase. Please follow these NERS guidelines to ship items to your home to support your teaching, learning, and research:
- You can have items under $5,000 delivered to your home without pre-approval from Procurement. For most of these purchases, you can use your P-Card or pay out of pocket and get reimbursed through Concur.
- I must pre-approve deliveries to a non-University address for purchases between $5-10K. Please send me an email to document the request and approval.
- Purchases over $10K must follow regular protocols (send to bid or sole-sourced) and delivered to a University address.
- Most purchases made through other University systems (purchase orders, Marketsite) cannot be sent to a non-University address. This is a system limitation. Exceptions are CDWG and B&H catalogs which can be coordinated through the Tech Shop.
- For all items shipped to a non-University address, please make sure you do the following in Concur: 1) add an appropriate business purpose, 2) attach a receipt, 3) add a copy of the temporary exception letter from Procurement (attached) to the Concur report.
- This temporary policy is in place until August 27, 2021.
Front office questions: ne-officecoverage@umich.edu

Students

All advising requires an appointment. Graduate and undergraduate student advising is held remotely.
Todd Allen will hold office hours for graduate students by appointment on Fridays.
Additional resources for students from U-M and CoE.
Graduate students and postdocs can request to check out office equipment here.
Undergraduate and Engineering Physics questions: Michelle Sonderman (Undergraduate Program Manager)
Graduate student questions: Garnette Roberts (Graduate Program Manager)

Staff

Administrative staff can view individual staff schedules and the front office staff schedule.
Current A-Z List for New Faculty and Staff.
Additional resources for staff from U-M and CoE.
Staff questions: Besnik Topulli (NERS Department Administrator)

Faculty

Current A-Z List for New Faculty and Staff.
Additional resources for faculty from U-M and CoE.
Faculty questions: Todd Allen (NERS Chair)

Research

Research operates according to the Office of Research Research Re-engagement Guidelines. Check with the lab PI for specific lab SOPs.
Adding personnel to labs is per the discretion of the PI/Lab/Unit director. NERS is required to maintain an accurate list of researchers added to our labs on or after April 1, 2021, so please email Besnik Topulli when new students or researchers are added to your labs.
Close Proximity Approval is only required for research and training activities when all members of the team involved in the activity have not self-reported being vaccinated. Use this form.
Domestic Travel and Field Research Travel—No College permission is required.
International Travel and Field Research Travel—No College permission is required. However, they strongly recommend that faculty, staff, and students register all their international travel via the Global Michigan website. Doing so allows travelers to receive information regarding travel-related covid requirements and risks. CDC requirements for anyone entering the country from many international destinations remain in effect and in some instances involve testing and isolation upon return.
Safety-related research questions: Nick Jordan (NERS Associate Research Scientist)
General research questions: Besnik Topulli (NERS Department Administrator)

Financial Expenditures

Effective July 1, 2021, the College of Engineering’s COVID-19 spending restrictions have been lifted. We may now return to our pre-COVID spending provided that we:
Observe all other University policies

Use a “dimmer switch” approach as we return to normal operation, in consultation with both the CDC and University Campus Maize and BluePrint websites for guidelines related to COVID-19.
Financial Expenditures questions: Besnik Topulli (NERS Department Administrator)