Baylor Fall Preparations: Cleaning

Baylor Students, Faculty, Staff and Parents:

Last week, we discussed the COVID-19 test kits that are being mailed to your home or designated address and the vital role each of you play in ensuring a safe, successful on-campus start and completion of Baylor University’s fall semester.

Today, I’d like to share with you more details of the extensive planning and precautionary measures – particularly relating to cleaning and sanitization – we are implementing across our campus to both prepare for your arrival and provide the best opportunity to keep all of our Baylor Family healthy and well once we are all back together.

Our University partner Aramark Facilities Services has developed an in-depth plan that focuses on many key areas of best practices and technological innovations while following or exceeding the most up-to-date recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local health authorities. Aspects of this plan include:

• Adopting entry policies – instituting social distanced lines where queues would form (dining halls, bookstore, mailroom, etc.), clearly marked “entry only” and “exit only” signage on doors to allow for more effective social distancing;
• Creating spatial separation – reducing room and building occupancy levels, adjusting seat density in classrooms, altering traffic flow patterns, adding robotic cleaning services;
• Improving indoor air quality – increasing outside air circulation, per new CDC guidelines, flushing the air at the beginning and end of each day to reduce risk of airborne contagions, installation of state-of-the-art air filtration technologies like HEPA filters and UV-C light treatments, cleaning select air ducts;
• Increasing cleaning and hygiene – mandatory use of face coverings across campus, providing hand sanitizer stations, increased manual cleaning of high-touch areas, utilizing electrostatic sprayers to augment disinfection of high-traffic and high-touch areas; and
• Re-enforcing occupant understanding – frequent use of signage to help provide direction and information, recurring messages from campus partners.

Some of the safety procedures and implementations across campus will be clear and evident, while others may not be immediately seen or heard. One of the cutting-edge technologies you may not see – but will likely all benefit from – is the addition of UV-C air filtration systems. These UV air purifiers use short-wave ultraviolet light to kill airborne pathogens and micro-organisms such as mold, bacteria and viruses. The UV-C filtration systems will be installed in most residence halls across campus in time for the fall semester, with all other residence halls utilizing upgraded filters.

Baylor’s other cleaning and sanitizing efforts include:

• 550+ hand sanitizer dispensers – installed across campus, focusing on building entrances, elevators, stairwell entry and outside large-capacity classrooms;
• 550+ sanitizing wipe receptacles – installed alongside the hand sanitizer stations;
• Drinking fountains – marked to not drink or use to prevent community spread;
• Plexiglass barriers – installed in offices or anywhere that 6-foot social distancing cannot be achieved;
• Distributing supplies – hand sanitizer, wipes, floor signage, elevator signage and mask signage; and
• Hand dryers – turned off and/or being removed, replaced with paper towel dispensers.

Baylor’s classrooms and offices will be cleaned at a level to meet the CDC Guidance for Disinfection with a model built to ensure maximum efficiency and reduce risk of exposure to students, faculty, staff and cleaning personnel. These measures include:

• Modified schedules built around building usage and traffic;
• High-touch items in public areas disinfected multiple times a day; and
• Classrooms and office spaces will have disinfecting wipes and hand sanitizer stations nearby.

As your personal COVID-19 test kits begin arriving over the next two weeks, I cannot stress enough for our students how important it is that you take the test as soon as you receive it and mail the sample back the same day as you take the test. This is a crucial step in ensuring a safe return to campus for all of us.

It’s hard to believe that August has arrived, and Aug. 24 will be here before we know it! Let’s all continue to do our part over the next several weeks in preparing for the fall semester by social distancing, wearing face coverings, practicing hand sanitization and avoiding large gatherings and groups.

Let’s #SicCOVID!

Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D.
President