Testing

Students and employees are currently required to participate in the college’s COVID-19 testing program. Smith’s asymptomatic testing program is managed by the Broad Institute.

This dashboard will be updated daily. In accordance with applicable privacy laws, the college will not release any personally identifying information regarding individual cases.

 

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View a text-based version of the COVID-19 Screening Data.

Notes

The following groups are included in the college’s mandatory, twice-weekly coronavirus screening: students approved to be in residence on or near campus and approved on-campus employees. Smith’s asymptomatic screening program is managed by the Broad Institute.

Only figures relating to the on-campus screening of employees and students are in included in these data.

While an initial 124 single-occupancy rooms have been set aside for quarantine and isolation, Smith College has the flexibility to add several additional houses as either isolation or quarantine space as needed.

National and state data from CDC COVID-19 Electronic Laboratory Reporting (CELR), Commercial Laboratories, State Public Health Labs, and In-House Hospital Labs via The US Department of Health and Human Services under an Open Data Commons Attribution License. For details on federal data definitions please refer here.

County data is provided by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is updated weekly. For more info about COVID response reporting in Massachusetts, please click here.


Community Testing


    Contact Tracing

    For Students

    • The college has a team of contact tracers who are in touch with students who test positive within 12 hours of result reporting, but usually much sooner. 
    • Students who test positive for COVID-19 will be moved to an isolation space for at least 10 days.
    • A contact tracer will conduct a state required interview with any student who tests positive to ensure they have what they need during isolation and to identify any potential close contacts. The identity of the person who tests positive will be held in confidence and only shared with medical providers at the Schacht Center and the Director of Residence Life to facilitate movement to an isolation space and the monitoring of the student’s health while in isolation. 
    • Identified close contacts will be notified of their potential exposure and advised about appropriate quarantine protocols.
    • In most cases, fully vaccinated close contacts do not need to be quarantined in a designated space, but are required to follow public health guidelines as detailed by the contact tracer and test on days 3 - 5 after exposure.
    • Unvaccinated close contacts are required to quarantine for a minimum of 7 days and be tested on days 5 - 7 of exposure. Unvaccinated student close contacts will be moved to a designated quarantine space.
    • Email notifications will be sent out to all students who may have attended class with the case during the infectious period. Instructors and classmates will be instructed to test on days 3 - 5 after exposure and to follow public health recommendations.

    If you are experiencing any symptoms or you think you have been exposed to COVID-19, please complete this form and a member of the contact tracing team will be in touch with you.

    For Employees

    • The college has a team of contact tracers who are in touch with employees who test positive within 12 hours of result reporting, but usually much sooner. 
    • A contact tracer will conduct a state required interview with any employee who tests positive to ensure they have what they need during isolation and to identify any potential close contacts. The identity of the employee who tests positive will be held in confidence and only shared with a designated human resource representative for the purpose of confirming the employee’s need to remain off campus for the duration of the isolation period.
    • Employees who test positive for COVID-19 will be instructed to stay home for at least 10 days and to be in contact with their primary care provider as soon as possible. 
    • During the contact tracing process, close contacts who are Smith College community members will be identified, interviewed, and advised of public health guidelines to follow during the quarantine period. 
    • In most cases, fully vaccinated close contacts do not need to quarantine at home, but are required to follow public health guidelines as detailed by the contact tracer and test on days 3 - 5 after exposure.
    • Unvaccinated close contacts are required to quarantine at home for a minimum of 7 days and be tested on days 5 - 7 of exposure.

    If you are experiencing any symptoms, have tested positive for COVID-19 outside of our testing program, or think you may have been exposed to COVID-19, please complete this form and a member of the contact tracing team will be in touch with you.


    Testing for Employees

    Asymptomatic Testing for Employees

    • Employees returning to on-campus work and new hires must receive a negative COVID test from the campus testing site within the three business days prior to returning to campus.
    • Employees must schedule their own screening(s) once their office has returned to campus.
    • Informed consent forms for the asymptomatic screening will be completed on site at the first screening appointment.
    • Results will be made available 36–48 hours after the screening is completed. Negative screening results will be provided via email.
    • Positive screening results will be communicated by health-care staff at the Schacht Center for Health and Wellness. Employees who receive a positive screening result should contact their manager and their human resources representative as soon as possible to discuss next steps.
    • Employees who know they will be away from campus for at least a week (vacation, sick time, etc) should inform the Testing Team by emailing them at testingandtracing@smith.edu. Employees taking vacation or personal days for at least a week should submit time-off requests in Workday a week ahead of time to avoid compliance notification errors. Employees who are away for less than one week of time must participate in weekly testing.

    Symptomatic Testing for Employees

    • Employees experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 may schedule a drive-up or walk-up test at the Schacht Center should make an appointment by calling 413-585-2250 during regular business hours.
    • Do not go to the asymptomatic testing site in the Campus Center if you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms.
    • Employees who are experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 should notify their supervisor and go home or remain at home and complete this form. Employees may be asked to remain home until cleared with a negative COVID-19 test performed by their primary care provider, an approved off-campus test site, or the Schacht Center.
    • A member of the college’s Contact Tracing Team will reach out to test-positive employees within 24 hours to discuss any close contacts they may have had on campus. Cases will then be passed on to the local Board of Health, which will interview the employee about any close contacts in the employee’s town of residence.
    • If an employee tests positive after completing an asymptomatic screening, a Schacht Center staff member will call them to discuss the test result and offer guidance about how to access any needed medical care and how to navigate the state-required isolation period.
    • If an employee receives a positive result, a member of the HR team will assist them in recording their time on their timesheet (if applicable) and will assist in notifying their manager that they are approved for a leave of absence from their position. Employees will continue to be paid for any time spent in quarantine or isolation.
    • In accordance with state Department of Public Health requirements, a member of the college’s contact tracing team will call employees within 24 hours of receiving their positive test result. The tracer’s job is to conduct an interview to make sure the employees are connected with appropriate medical resources, offer broad information about isolation/quarantine guidelines, and help employees to identify anyone on campus with whom they may have had close contact. Workers will also be contacted by their local Board of Health in the city or town of their residence. Board of Health staff will work with them to ensure that they have any additional support needed and will inquire about anyone in the local community with whom the employee has direct contact.
    • If the employee does not develop symptoms, they will be able to return to work approximately 10 days after receiving their positive result. The Office of Human Resources will guide them in submitting appropriate medical certification to return to work.
    • If the employee does develop symptoms, they should contact their primary health-care provider for guidance. They may return to work after:
      1. 10 days have passed since symptoms first appeared
      2. 24 hours with no fever without the use of fever-reducing medications
      3. Other symptoms of COVID-19 are improving
      4. Their doctor has cleared them to return to work and provided the Office of Human Resources with appropriate medical certification to return to work.
    • After the employee tests positive, they will continue to show positive test results for up to 90 days. They should discontinue asymptomatic screening protocol during this time. A representative from the asymptomatic screening and contract tracing team will be in touch with them at the end of the 90 days to remind them to begin asymptomatic screening again.