Vaccines and masks provide the best protection against COVID-19

With the start of the fall semester, we want to ensure that faculty and staff have the tools needed to maintain a safe classroom environment. UF Health Screen, Test & Protect Director Michael Lauzardo, M.D., M.Sc., reiterated during last week’s faculty town hall that masks and vaccines provide the best protection against COVID-19, including the delta variant. The Aug. 18 Campus Brief also stressed that all people inside of UF facilities are expected to wear masks in community spaces in buildings, including common areas in our office suites, when we are not in our individual offices or workspaces, even if you are vaccinated. To read the full campus brief, visit the University Updates website at https://coronavirus.ufl.edu/university-updates/august-18-campus-brief-.html.

UF will continue to make non-medical use N95/KN95 masks available to all UF faculty and staff. If you are in need of a mask, please reach out to your area’s HR Liaison or designated point of contact. You can find the HR Liaison list on the UFHR website at https://hr.ufl.edu/about/hr-liaisons/. All UF employees are eligible for one mask per workday, or 20 masks per month. In addition, classrooms continue to be cleaned by dedicated custodians, and hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes and disposable masks will be placed in all classrooms. Facility Services will monitor the supply of these items and refresh them, as needed.

Departments that wish to purchase additional N95 or KN95 masks and other PPE may do so independently via myUF Marketplace. For more information, please visit the UF Procurement Services website at https://procurement.ufl.edu/covid19ppe/.

Schedule your COVID-19 vaccine appointment

UF strongly encourages all faculty, staff and students to get vaccinated. Faculty and staff needing to schedule a COVID-19 vaccine appointment may do so through their ONE.UF account https://one.uf.edu/. More information regarding COVID-19 and vaccines may be found on the UF Health Screen, Test & Protect website at https://coronavirus.ufhealth.org/screen-test-protect-2/.