Dear Members of the Campus Community,

As you may know, Governor Cuomo has issued an executive order closing all businesses and non-profit institutions as of 8 p.m. Sunday, March 22, 2020. I’m afraid the language of the order is very clear: Fordham may not allow any students who are not already residing in a residence hall inside Fordham buildings after 8 p.m. Sunday.

Likewise, faculty and staff will be prohibited from entering Fordham property after 8 p.m. Sunday, March 22, with the exception of a small number of essential staff in Public Safety, Facilities, Residential Life, and IT. Select faculty and staff will be allowed to enter campus periodically and briefly to perform live animal care at Rose Hill, Lincoln Center, and the Calder Center after 8 p.m. Sunday.

This ban also affects students who have previously signed up to retrieve belongings between March 30 and May 17: we will notify you by email when the order is lifted and you may reschedule your move-out date and time.

I strongly urge you to avoid coming to campus between now and 8 p.m. Sunday, but in cases of dire necessity, students, faculty, and staff may return briefly to retrieve critically important belongings (i.e. medications, academic materials, or important papers). For health and safety reasons, we will not be able to accommodate any requests to move belongings out of residence halls in this period. Students with questions should contact Residential Life staff at [email protected] or [email protected]; faculty should consult with the Office of the Provost; and staff should contact their immediate managers.

Though I know this may be a great inconvenience to some of you, the University has no choice in enforcing the executive order, and these measures will help protect the University community from greater exposure to the COVID-19 virus.

You are all in my thoughts and prayers today and every day.

Sincerely,

Joseph M. McShane, S.J.