President's Message

Preparing for Flu Season

For a number of years, Montclair State University has had plans in place to address wide-ranging campus safety issues and health concerns. This past year we put in place even more comprehensive plans to deal with health emergencies, and, specifically, the forecasted flu pandemic this fall.

This effort includes a campus-wide response team comprised of more than 100 of your colleagues drawn from all areas of academic and administrative operations. These individuals have been trained to respond to major incidents on and off campus that affect the community, including pandemic medical emergencies. In March of 2009 the team spent two full days in a “what if” exercise regarding a major flu outbreak and participated in a mock exercise recreating a situation that began as limited in scope and extended to a statewide emergency.

We have applied these preparedness efforts to respond to the upcoming flu season and are working closely with state and local health departments to monitor flu conditions. Vaccination clinics for the seasonal flu are already underway on campus, and we will shortly be announcing a schedule of free H1N1 flu vaccinations on campus for all staff, faculty, and students.

The University Health Center receives daily updates from the CDC and the New Jersey Department of Health regarding any changes in the national and/or state conditions and is also in contact with county health agencies.

Other campus strategies implemented to date include:

• A campus-wide education campaign for flu prevention is underway, including reminders about hand washing and respiratory/cough hygiene distributed via letters, flyers, e-mails, screen saver messages, and Web postings. Web and e-mail updates will be disseminated as appropriate throughout the semester.
• A flu Web page with focused flu information and updates has been added to the University Web site and can be found at http://www.montclair.edu/flu.
• Detailed plans for the vaccination of the campus community for both seasonal flu and the H1N1 Flu have been developed and are ready for implementation. The University is an official point of distribution for flu vaccine and will have large quantities of available vaccine.
• Training/information sessions have been conducted for departments and staff who work and live with students, including Facilities Services, Residential Education and Services, and the Campus Recreation Center.
• A schedule of “focused” cleaning of contact surfaces by Facilities Services staff has been implemented.
• Necessary supplies of hand sanitizer, facemasks, clinical care supplies, and essential protective equipment have been purchased.

I urge you to visit the Montclair State Web site to acquaint yourself with the recommendations that we have adopted from the CDC and the New Jersey Department of Health. Also, visit the Web site periodically for updates on the University’s preparedness, and the resources that are in place for the entire campus community. Suggestions for faculty related to instruction will be available from the deans and the provost.

If you have any concerns or questions, please do not hesitate to forward those to your dean or vice president. Other officers available to assist you include: Provost Gingerich, Vice President Pennington, Vice President Hain, Chief of Police Paul Cell, and Donna M. Barry, director of the University Health Center.

Please do your best to participate in prevention strategies against the spread of flu and encourage others to do so as well.

Susan A. Cole
President