Faculty Face Coverings Non-Compliance Policy

While there is a firm expectation that faculty when on campus will wear a face covering, there is, of course, an accommodation process to exempt certain individuals from this policy, as necessary. This accommodation process was communicated and made available to faculty beginning in fall 2020.

In all other cases, the following steps provide an outline of the process the university shall use when managing situations where a faculty member fails to comply with the university’s face coverings policy: 

1.  If a faculty member is seen not wearing a face covering at all times, by any member of the campus community, they should contact the department chair, dean of students, or public safety to let the university know of the incident and fill out an online report form.

a.  Reminder: Face coverings must be worn along with other classroom preventative measures, such as cleaning of high-touch surfaces, to help reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19. A shared responsibility of wearing a face covering, practicing good hygiene and following other health and safety guidelines provides a multi-layered approach to protect yourself and others.

2.  Once a faculty non-compliance case is reported, the Human Resources Office, in partnership with the faculty member’s college, shall investigate the situation. 

3.  If the faculty member has been determined to be non-compliant, the Human Resources Office, appropriate department chair, and college dean’s office shall work closely together to resolve the matter. 

• For non-compliant situations involving LEOs: If any disciplinary action is taken towards lecturers, it will strictly follow the process and language outlined in the LEO collective bargaining agreement, under Article XX, Discipline and Dismissal.
• For non-compliant situations involving tenure-stream faculty:
  • First offense: 
    • Conversation with their department chair/dean about the essential nature of wearing a face covering.
    • If necessary, a letter of reprimand issued to the faculty member and entered into their teaching file noting the refusal to wear a face covering. The letter shall be considered to be part of their next annual review process and affect their potential merit increase accordingly. 
  • Second offense: 
    • Letter of reprimand issued to the faculty member and entered into their employee file noting the second incident of refusing to wear a face covering, and indicating that they will receive no merit in the next annual review cycle when merit raises are available.
    • Additional sanctions, such as ineligibility for summer support or other opportunities, would be considered and, if appropriate, applied.