University Messages

We’ve continued to fulfill our teaching and research mission throughout this global pandemic by doing our part to “protect the pack” and keep each other safe. Earlier this month, more than 500 Northeastern community members—including staff in the Life Sciences Testing Center, our COVID testing centers, and our first responders—received vaccinations in Phase One of Massachusetts’ vaccination plan. If you believe that you qualified for a vaccine in Phase One based on the Massachusetts guidelines and did not receive an invitation to schedule one, please contact COVID19vaccine@northeastern.edu.  

Earlier this week, Northeastern became one of the first universities in the United States to begin vaccinating its campus community. This important milestone marks a critical turning point in our continuing efforts over the last ten months to safeguard the health of the Northeastern community and help hasten the end of the pandemic.

We’re excited to welcome you to campus for the spring term! If you’re traveling soon, now is the time to plan for a safe and healthy transition to campus.  

On Tuesday, Northeastern became one of the first universities in the United States to administer COVID-19 vaccines. Nearly 100 people who work in the Cabot Testing Center, the Life Sciences Testing Center, and University Health and Counseling Services received their first dose.

We’re delighted to see you on campus soon for the spring term. As many of you will join the Northeastern community for the first time, we want to share important information and resources that will help you make a safe and healthy transition to the university, including how to get tested as soon as you arrive on campus.  

Here is the return testing protocol for the spring semester, which goes into effect on January 4, 2021. For Intersession, this protocol is now in place. This means if you are taking Intersession courses, the first of your three required COVID-19 tests should be scheduled as soon as possible in anticipation of the December 28 start. You will need to make sure your status in the test scheduler is primarily in-person to begin this process.

Congratulations on approaching the end of a successful fall term, and thank you for the daily actions you took to make it possible! We write with an update on Northeastern’s plans for a safe transition to the winter break and then back to classes in the spring.  

Congratulations on approaching the end of a successful fall term, and thank you for the daily actions you took to Protect the Pack! As we look forward to the spring term, Northeastern has several requirements to help students make a safe transition to the winter break and then back to classes next month. 

We want to share with you an important update to the existing Visitor Protocol, which restricts visits to Northeastern’s campuses from those outside the university community who do not have a current and active university identification card. The Visitor Protocol and the following guidance apply to all of Northeastern’s locations across the global network.  

As you approach finals and make decisions about the next academic term, Northeastern has two resources available in the Student Hub to help guide you.  

With the Thanksgiving break rapidly approaching, I want to reiterate Northeastern’s requirements and guidance for travel – particularly the two required forms: (1) the travel form that is to be completed before any travel, and (2) the return form required upon your return to the Boston area. It is important that both forms are submitted for any travel outside of the Boston area.

As you make your plans to travel during the Thanksgiving break, I write to provide an update on Northeastern’s requirements and guidance for leaving and returning to campus safely.  

We want to share with you an important update. Over the course of ten days, four Chartwells employees working in the Stetson East dining hall on the Boston campus have tested positive for COVID-19 at Northeastern’s Cabot Testing Center. All four individuals went into isolation immediately following their diagnoses. Any close contacts have been notified, with instructions to be tested off-campus and quarantine.

On Monday, Governor Charlie Baker announced several new public health and safety measures aimed at curbing the recent rise of COVID-19 cases in the Commonwealth. I am writing to provide you with additional clarity about these changes.

Working together this semester we successfully reimagined almost every aspect of university life—from teaching to dining to recreation. Guided by the scientific expertise on our faculty, we launched a world-class testing operation and developed innovative approaches to classroom instruction. What we have achieved this semester, we have achieved together. Our students are extraordinarily appreciative of your efforts and so am I.

As of today, Northeastern has completed more than 310,000 COVID-19 tests with a seven-day average positive test rate of 0.06%. From wearing masks to practicing healthy distancing to following the testing requirements, our Northeastern community has shown a daily commitment to health and safety.  

The free exchange of ideas is one of the hallmarks of a great university. As an institution of higher learning, Northeastern is committed to fostering an open dialogue on critical issues, and maintaining an inclusive educational environment where diverse views can be safely expressed in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

The Fall 2020 semester has had a very successful beginning to the academic year with strong compliance across our global university system, robust testing, and extremely low positivity rates on the Boston campus. The university is now in the process of reassessing staffing needs on the student-facing side, as well as operational priorities, and we expect that there will be a need to increase staffing across campuses over the coming weeks and months.

Much has changed since the spring when we moved to remote learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, people have settled into an adjusted way of life—wearing masks and practicing healthy distancing—as we eagerly await a vaccine or new forms of COVID-19 treatment. Compliance with public health guidance remains strong and we have demonstrated our collective ability to persevere in these challenging times. 

As of today, Northeastern has completed more than 250,000 COVID-19 tests with a seven-day average positive test rate of 0.05%. From wearing masks to practicing healthy distancing to following the testing requirements, our Northeastern community has shown a daily commitment to safety, health, and care for each other.  Based on these outcomes so far, Northeastern has made the decision to ease the following restrictions on its Boston campus.

As Northeastern approaches one month into the fall term, we wish to thank all of the students, staff, and faculty who have followed our safety protocols to “Protect the Pack.” As the Thanksgiving recess approaches, here are the requirements we ask of community members if they travel. Please note that these are general travel and re-entry protocols, not only for Thanksgiving, and will remain in place until further notice.  

The positive test rate at the Northeastern Boston Campus is currently at 0.06 percent. While this is very low, it should not be taken for granted. As part of our efforts to remain vigilant, we will share with academic administrative leaders and their designated points of contact a weekly report of faculty and staff compliance in their respective areas, as well as the steps for managers to address non-compliance.

With the month of September now behind us, we wish to take a moment to applaud the efforts of everyone in the Northeastern community who has taken the necessary steps to keep our Boston campus as safe as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic. The vast majority of students have complied with the testing requirements that have been put in place. It is imperative that this commitment continues.

Thank you for the daily actions you are taking to promote a safe and healthy start to the fall term. For our Boston community, this includes regular and repeated COVID-19 testing. To make your testing process run as smoothly as possible, here are a few key reminders on the testing process for our Boston campus.   

 As we’ve shared in previous communications, Boston-based students are required to undergo COVID-19 testing every three days. So that we can best support you, we ask that you mark yourself primarily in-person or primarily remote in the COVID-19 Test Scheduler.  

As we have shared in previous communications, faculty or staff members who are primarily in-person on the Boston campus are required to undergo COVID-19 testing every four days. As more faculty and staff return to work on campus, we thought it would be a good time to clarify when to mark yourself primarily in-person or primarily remote in the COVID-19 Test Scheduler.  

Dear Northeastern Students,  Welcome to the first weeks of the fall term! As you settle into Hybrid NUflex classes and new routines and schedules, we’re doing the same by continuing to enhance and improve the technology and tools that you rely on, including the new dynamic scheduling tool. Many of you will be using or have questions about dynamic scheduling, a feature of the new Student Hub that helps to reduce classroom density while giving students flexibility to attend classes in person or remotely on a week-to-week basis. Here are a few FAQs on using…

We are pleased to share some important information about some of our most-frequented venues on campus:.

The students were discovered together in a room at the Westin Hotel in Boston on Wednesday night, in violation of university and public health protocols that prohibit crowded gatherings. They were enrolled in the N.U.in Program, a study-abroad experience for first-year students that has been modified in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and now includes Boston as one of the locations. There are 818 N.U.in students staying in two-person rooms at the Westin, less than one mile from the Boston campus.

*Published on September 4, 2020* Dear Northeastern University Community, We want to share with you a few important health and safety guidelines for eating and drinking on Northeastern’s campuses. Because people will need to remove their masks to consume food and beverages, eating and drinking on campus will be restricted to the designated areas where healthy, six-foot distancing can be maintained. Faculty, staff, students, and contract employees across all of our global campuses are required to observe the following guidelines around eating and drinking on campus: Eating and drinking is not allowed in classrooms, in hallways, in the library, in the COVID-19 testing centers, or…

In order to promote the safety of the Northeastern community while maintaining a comprehensive view of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the university has created a separate testing facility for students who exhibit symptoms of the illness.

*Published on September 1, 2020* Dear Northeastern University community, I am writing to share with you a few important updates about the COVID-19 Test Scheduler and how you access your test results. We have added new features to the COVID-19 Test Scheduler, including reminders and notifications for those required to get tested frequently on the Boston campus. Updates to the COVID-19 Test Scheduler The COVID-19 Test Scheduler now has the following enhancements to reinforce the testing requirements for our Boston students, faculty, staff, and contract employees: Scheduling tests and reminder notifications – After logging in and scheduling your first test, the COVID-19 Test Scheduler will…

We look forward to welcoming many of you to campus for the start of the fall term. As you prepare to begin classes again, it is important to remember the substantial measures the university has taken to promote the well-being of the Northeastern community.

Northeastern University is looking forward to welcoming you to campus for the fall term. We have been working around the clock for a streamlined and–most importantly–safe and healthy start to the fall term.

In a move designed to promote safety on the Boston campus and in the surrounding communities, Northeastern University will begin testing students for COVID-19 every three days, and faculty, staff, and contract workers twice a week, in order to more quickly catch and isolate any positive cases before the coronavirus that causes the disease can spread. The new testing cadence is a step up from the current schedule for people who work and learn on the Boston campus.

On August 7, we shared our safety recommendations before you travel to campus: minimize your contact with others for 14 days before you travel and get a test 72 hours or less prior to your arrival, if you are able. This email reminds you of those recommendations and shares further details on how they will impact your transition to campus.  

Earlier this week, Northeastern University learned of several students expressing on social media their intent to gather in large groups and to engage in parties. These plans disregard numerous government and university restrictions regarding safe distancing and social gatherings.

Since systematic testing for the coronavirus began Monday, Northeastern has completed 4,098 tests, with 4097 negative results and one positive. The university is launching an online dashboard to track and share the results of everyone being tested on the Boston campus.

Northeastern’s massive operation to test thousands of people regularly and quickly will be a crucial surveillance tool to promote the safety of everyone on the Boston campus and in its surrounding communities. “If we only focus on symptomatic people, we will still miss the cases that are being transmitted while asymptomatic or presymptomatic,” says Sehyo Yune, who directs the COVID-19 wellness team.

Welcome to the Hybrid NUflex classroom: Eight cupcake-shaped microphones extend from the ceiling like futuristic stalactites. Two swiveling cameras flank the clock at the front of the room. A single camera at the back focuses its lens on the instructor, blackboard, and projection screen. Northeastern is ready for hybrid learning.

Monday marked the first day of large-scale COVID-19 testing on campus, and the beginning of the facility’s “spin-up” period, during which staff will smooth out any rough edges of the testing operation before undergraduate students return on Aug. 29.

As students, faculty, and staff make their way to residence halls, labs, and offices Monday, they will find a university transformed from top to bottom to promote the safety of the Northeastern community and the surrounding neighborhoods.

When testing for the Northeastern community begins Monday at the Cabot Physical Education Center, quick and painless will be the goals. “We don’t want you to lose a big chunk of your day,” says David Luzzi, senior vice provost for research and vice president of Northeastern’s Innovation Campus.

Following up on Thursday’s university announcement about testing frequency and scheduling, we want to share important items that students, faculty and staff members will need to complete ahead of returning to campus and use throughout the fall semester.

In the coming days, faculty, students and staff will start to return to residence halls, classrooms, and offices across our global network. The university has planned for a successful fall reopening with the safety and wellbeing of our community as our top priority. It is critical that every student, faculty and staff member does their part by looking out for their own health and the health of others around them. This email shares key information on how we will ask you to do so.  

Comprehensive coronavirus testing for faculty, staff, and contract workers, as well as students, will begin on Monday, Aug. 17, and will play an integral role in the university’s plan to reopen and promote the safety of its surrounding communities. Here’s what you need to know about how it will work.

As Northeastern reopens its campuses, the priority remains the health and wellbeing of the university community—and the world beyond its campuses. Here are a set of individual expectations required of students, faculty, and staff.

Last week, the university announced rigorous testing and quarantine requirements for our students’ arrival on the Boston campus. As we continue to follow the advice of Northeastern’s leading COVID-19 scientists, we have additional recommendations for all Northeastern students to incorporate into their travel preparation.  

With state-of-the-art laboratory equipment to conduct the complex tests that can determine whether someone has contracted the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, and a growing team of medical, clinical, and other laboratory technicians with specialized training, the new facilities are designed to process up to 5,000 samples a day, and turn around results within 36 hours.

The center on the Boston campus will reopen on Aug. 10 with the capacity for 30 children this summer. In order to promote the health and safety of the children, parents, and staff who use it, the center will feature new, staggered drop-off times, plexiglass walls to divide the space, reduced seating at tables, rigorous sanitation, and other health and safety procedures, says Regina Nazzaro, director of the children’s center.

To promote the safety of Northeastern University and our surrounding communities, Northeastern will require all of its students in Boston to undergo COVID-19 testing on arrival and to quarantine until their first negative test result.

Air circulation and ventilation in classrooms, labs, and residence halls are being upgraded to meet or exceed public health guidelines. Thousands of touchless hand sanitizers and towel dispensers are being installed, with more on the way. An around-the-clock team of hundreds of cleaners will be spraying and scrubbing public spaces as often as three times a day—and overnight, every night, much of Northeastern will undergo a hygienic makeover.

*Published on July 13, 2020* As students, faculty, and staff of Northeastern begin a phased return to the Boston campus, one of the integral components of ensuring the safety of everyone involved is testing for SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19. The university is providing free viral tests for students living on and off the Boston campus, as well as faculty, staff, and other employees, to determine if they are infected with the coronavirus, says David Luzzi, senior vice provost for research and vice president of Northeastern’s Innovation Campus. “This…

The university is planning a number of measures to conduct free coronavirus testing of students, faculty, and staff who will be returning to the Boston campus in the fall. “This testing is for everyone,” says David Luzzi, senior vice provost for research and vice president of Northeastern’s Innovation Campus. “The goal here is to keep fully on top of what’s happening on campus.”

As we move toward reopening our campuses in fall 2020, we write to share additional updates on how the university is preparing its classes, buildings, and residence halls for a return to campus in the fall term.   

*Published June 30, 2020* Dear Faculty and Staff, As we have discussed in recent weeks, the university is actively planning for a fall reopening with students returning to our campuses. As part of the planning, academic and administrative departments across the university are expected to be ready to enter Stage V and reopen by August 17 with staffing plans that enable senior managers to fully meet their respective business goals and objectives. Each senior vice president has designated a point of contact who will work with managers to develop a staffing plan, taking into consideration both onsite and remote staffing in an effort…

Starting the week of July 6th, students returning to the Boston campus for Summer II and to begin their co-op positions with Boston-area employers, will be required to undergo COVID-19 viral testing. Tests are free and results will be provided within 36 hours.

As Northeastern plans for the reopening of its campuses across our global network, we continue to be guided by the central priority of the health and wellbeing of our community. We are committed to delivering the highest-quality Northeastern experience for each one of our students, in a way that gives each student flexible options that serve their educational goals. As we move toward reopening the university this fall, the information below provides a summary of the planning, decisions, and actions to date.

On March 12, we announced the suspension of all non-essential university travel, both domestic and international. Today, we write to announce that this suspension has been lifted and to outline the procedures for engaging in university travel. Please understand that much of the world remains under travel restrictions and the resumption of travel will be slow and uneven across the country and the globe.

Today, we are announcing Hybrid NUflex, an exciting hybrid-flexible learning experience available for Northeastern classes this fall.  Hybrid NUflex will provide a learning experience that is personalized for each student’s needs, whether they are on campus or joining the class from a remote location.

In the coming days, we will begin the phased return of a small number of faculty, staff, and students working in critical research labs, and administrative staff working in critical functions that are difficult to perform effectively from off campus.

Two months have now passed since the COVID-19 pandemic upended our daily routines and way of life. Through it all, the Northeastern community has shown tremendous dexterity and resilience. Under the most challenging of conditions, we continue to educate our students and advance the frontiers of knowledge through our research.

As the university closes the spring term while planning for the months ahead, we write to share several important updates for our learning community.

As Northeastern approaches the end of an unexpectedly challenging semester, we write with an update on the university’s critical priorities—continuing to serve your students’ educational needs and those of our global community.

In this time of worldwide hardship, we know that many of you are wondering how Northeastern will continue to move forward. Our answer is, just as we always have: by doubling down on our mission of learning and discovery. It is our steadfast belief that the solution to the planet’s greatest challenges—including this one—is the light of new knowledge.

As the spring semester draws to a close, we continue to evaluate and refine our pass/fail grading policy. As each of you know, these are extraordinary times that require additional flexibility on the part of the university. Some students and families are enduring remarkable hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. To address these issues, we will allow undergraduate students to take some or all courses pass/fail this semester.

Previously, the university announced that all in-person courses for Summer I and CPS Spring and Summer Quarters would move to an online format. Based on continued guidance from public health officials, the determination has been made to move Summer II course delivery online.

Many of you have expressed questions and concerns about positive diagnoses of COVID-19 within the Northeastern community. Namely, people learn about someone being diagnosed and are wondering, understandably, what it means for them or their colleagues, particularly if they think they may have been in contact with a person who has tested positive.

These are unprecedented times with unprecedented demands that span our professional and personal lives. While the circumstances that factor into managing work, life, learning—and the blurring lines in between—may be unique to each individual, we want to assure everyone in the Northeastern family that there is a support system with resources available to students, faculty, and staff, including the relevant expertise of Northeastern researchers.

In accordance with the Mecklenburg County Stay-at-Home order announced today, Northeastern’s location in Charlotte will be closed effective Thursday, March 26 through April 16, 2020. Staff will work remotely, and only essential university personnel will be permitted access to these facilities, if and when deemed necessary. Online and remote instruction will continue as planned. Staff are still available by email, phone, and through virtual meetings.

In accordance with the latest guidance from the Governor and public health authorities, effective at noon tomorrow, Tuesday, March 24, 2020, Northeastern’s Massachusetts campuses will be restricted to “on-site essential” employees only. Any employee who needs to retrieve critical items from campus should make arrangements to do so prior to 12:00 p.m. tomorrow.

I am writing to provide an important notice of change to the university’s Pass/Fail grading policy in light of the move to online and remote learning necessitated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The following adjustments have been made to the Pass/Fail grading policy for all Spring 2020 undergraduate courses:

In an effort to keep the Northeastern community continuously informed, we write to provide you with the latest real-time updates about the university’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Consistent with our ongoing efforts to provide up-to-date resources and information, we are writing to notify you that a Northeastern student living in off-campus housing in Boston has tested positive for COVID-19. In keeping with CDC protocols, this first test—conducted at a Boston-area hospital—will need to be verified by the CDC, which may take several days.

We are writing to clarify some important information and answer questions about our request that students move out of Northeastern residence halls in Boston by Tuesday at 5:00 pm. We are aware that this will require students and their families to act expeditiously; the unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic requires that we take action to protect public health. In addition, new restrictions on international travel—and possible restrictions on travel within the U.S.—have led to this increased urgency.

Based upon continuing guidance from public health officials, we are requesting that all students who reside in Northeastern residence halls complete their end of semester move-out no later than Tuesday, March 17, 2020, at 5:00 p.m.

In light of the ongoing developments relating to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the College will move to online and remote teaching and student support from Monday 16th March, 2020.

Following guidance and recommendations informed by Mecklenburg County Health Department, and the State of North Carolina, and to ensure educational continuity, Northeastern is making the following operational changes to the Charlotte campuses, effective Monday, March 16, 2020 ...

We are asking students to refrain from gathering together in groups to access online course delivery, especially in common areas of university research centers and classroom buildings. Classrooms remain available for study by students and faculty individually, or in small groups observing appropriate density and spacing recommendations.

We write to provide new updates and further clarity on the steps we are taking across a range of academic, student support, and campus operational functions to reduce the risk of transmission of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) to the university community.

Beginning today, in accordance with guidance from public health authorities and with a goal of reducing density on campus, we are making the following temporary change to the remote work policy…

Beginning tomorrow morning, we will move to online and remote instruction on our Boston campus, the university’s largest and most complex operation. We arrived at this decision carefully and thoughtfully, not precipitously. We are seeking to preserve the essence of a Northeastern education—including current co-op placements—while also taking prudent steps to reduce the risk of infection within our community.

In light of the continuing global impact and community transmission of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19)—and in accordance with public health recommendations—we are writing again to share important updates designed to protect the Northeastern community, while maintaining continuity of education and research.

This is the latest in a series of regular messages to keep the Northeastern community updated on planning and decision-making related to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19). We would like to reiterate that there is no higher priority than the health and wellbeing of our students, faculty, staff, and others affiliated with Northeastern.

Notice of change to San Francisco and Silicon Valley campus operations in response to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Northeastern president pushes for federal protections for F-1 visa-holders in light of COVID-19 measures

Based on the guidance of public health officials in light of the COVID-19 outbreak, the university will be offering online teaching exclusively to students of its campus in Seattle beginning Monday, March 9. Classes will be offered online or remotely to Northeastern’s 1,135 Seattle students.

As students and faculty prepare to return from spring break, we are writing to update you on the university’s efforts to monitor and respond to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Following the latest developments in the global spread of the coronavirus disease COVID-19 and the related public health guidelines, Northeastern is requesting that students, faculty and staff traveling from the countries identified by the Centers for Disease Control as “Level 3” not return to any of the university’s campuses for 14 days following the day they arrive in the U.S., even if they are symptom-free.

As you are well aware, the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak requires Northeastern University to be prepared and resilient to ensure learning and business continuity in the event that students, faculty and staff may not be able to come to campus or attend classes in person. The time to prepare is now.

Northeastern University is continuing to monitor the current 2019 Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, and university leaders are planning for a broad range of contingencies. We wanted to share with you some important information regarding spring break travel.

Here are a few important updates, including updated travel restrictions in the U.S., U.K., and Canada; upcoming drop-in info sessions for the Northeastern community held on our Boston campus; and a university travel registry we encourage all travelers to use.

This communication includes: important facts, the latest public health guidance related to the virus, and useful prevention techniques, appropriate responses for likely scenarios, and important internal and external resources.