Faculty and Staff FAQs

Faculty will be required to be fully vaccinated including obtaining a booster shot when eligible. Further implementation details will be provided shortly, including deadlines for compliance. Staff must be fully vaccinated or participate in the CUNY testing program and provide a negative PSR result within 7 days of entry from a CUNY testing site.

Twenty percent of all vaccinated and unvaccinated faculty, staff and students who are on-campus will be subject to weekly random surveillance testing through the CUNY testing program. You will receive an email notification if you have been selected.

You must upload your vaccination documents into CUNYfirst. The Office of Human Resources (OHR) reviews records that are uploaded, and if you submit valid proof of vaccination, your status will change from “pending” to “approved” in the CUNYfirst vaccination record. You can check your status by logging into CUNYfirst; please allow time for the review process to take place. Your approved status with be synced with Baruch College’s access control system, and you will be able to use your ID card to swipe in as you would normally.

Our ID card system has been operating as intended—and our Public Safety staff has access to CUNYfirst to check vaccination status—but we still recommend that, as a back-up plan, you take a picture of your CDC card or have the New York State Excelsior Pass on your phone or bring a copy of your card. This is especially important if your documents have not been approved in CUNYfirst (i.e., you uploaded them past the August 16 deadline).

We hope to implement a solution that will allow us to use the data file of test results in our ID card system, but that has not been feasible initially. Therefore, you must show your test result when you come to campus or you will not be permitted to enter campus buildings.

We will use the same ID card swipe process for staff on the Research Foundation payroll. However, as a back-up plan, please take a picture of your CDC card or have the Excelsior Pass on your phone or bring a copy or download the CUNY VaxPass using the VAXPASS User Setup Guide. For staff, you must bring proof that you are fully vaccinated or provide a negative Covid-19 PCR test performed by an accredited lab no more than seven days prior to your visit.

All students taking on-campus classes and those who have a fully online academic schedule but wish to use on-campus resources must be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Furthermore, students taking in-person/hybrid courses in 2022 must be fully vaccinated when classes begin. CUNY’s most-recent policies and guidance to students are found here.

CUNY’s visitor policy requires visitors to provide proof that they are either fully vaccinated or have had a negative Covid-19 PCR test performed by an accredited lab no more than seven days prior to their visit. Read the full policy here.

In a message to the University community, “Mask Policy Update” (March 3), CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodríguez announced the lifting of the temporary mask mandate, effective Monday, March 7. (Since August 2021, the temporary mask mandate required all CUNY students, faculty, staff, and visitors to wear masks inside University campuses, office buildings, classrooms, and other non-enclosed spaces.)

Yes.  Here are some of the steps we are taking to ensure compliance:

• Increased ventilation of outdoor air is key. Most of Baruch’s buildings—the Field Building at 17 Lexington Avenue is an outlier—have modern HVAC systems, which allow for maximized airflow from the outside. For 17 Lex, a multiplatform HVAC approach will be implemented that includes maximized airflow in the window units, maximizing air intake and exhaust building systems, HEPA filter units and UVU units as needed, and the ability to open windows (previously prohibited for safety concerns) to a set stop of four to six inches.
• For the Annex Building, in which the College leases space, Buildings and Grounds has worked closely with the landlord and superintendent to ensure CDC guidelines are being met. The building HVAC systems are running at 100% outside air.
• Stationary engineers—highly trained professionals focused on the care, maintenance, and operations of HVAC systems—are in charge of overseeing the College’s ventilation systems. As essential workers, they have continued preventative maintenance programs throughout the pandemic and will continue their work throughout our on-site transition.
• CUNY hired consultants to assess our building ventilation systems, and with the steps we have taken, they found them to be fully CDC compliant for intended use. See report here.

• Baruch’s Buildings and Grounds staff has been working since May—following frequently updated CDC recommendations—to prepare the campus for re-occupancy by deep cleaning all classrooms, workspaces, and common areas.
• A new, dedicated team of Covid cleaners—the ECT (Enhanced Cleaning Team)—will prioritize enhanced cleaning of high-touch surfaces, such as turnstiles, light switches, and door handles, throughout the College campus.
• Restrooms will be cleaned twice daily. That regimen includes the use of new equipment—steam machines purchased for efficient, deep bathroom cleaning. Additionally, bathroom hand driers have been disabled, and the restrooms will be stocked with soap and paper towels.
• Individuals will be required to maintain their own workspaces, which will be supplied with multisurface spray cleaner and paper towels per CDC best practices.

Based on latest CDC guidelines, physical distancing is unnecessary for the vaccinated. Those who are unvaccinated should continue to physically distance. Through the use of hybrid work schedules, there will be a reduced physical presence on campus (50%) at any one point.

No, but Public Safety officers will be stationed near elevators during periods of high use to prevent overcrowding. When feasible, it is recommended that faculty and staff use stairs and escalators.

Hand hygiene is an important tool to prevent infection. According to CDC guidelines, the preferred method is washing hands with soap and water. To that end, bathrooms will be stocked with soap and paper towels. Hand sanitizer stations will be placed where bathrooms are not readily available.

Yes. See details here.

First and foremost, Baruch offers an Employee Assistance Program—Corporate Counseling Associates—that provides a wide array of resources that are free. Additionally, there are monthly events, workshops, and other resources on the Office of Human Resources Wellness Corner webpage.

Yes, here is the list.

Please use our dedicated email box: SafeCampusReopening@baruch.cuny.edu.

The information hub is Baruch Forward. Please check regularly for updates as the situation is fluid and evolving to meet circumstances.