COVID-19 FAQ
Vaccine Requirements
What is Naropa University’s COVID-19 vaccine policy?
Naropa University requires that all on-campus students, faculty, and staff be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. This means receiving two doses of either Pfizer or Moderna OR one dose of J & J, AND any recommended booster doses. International students can submit proof of other vaccine types. Booster dose recommendations vary based on age, immunity issues, and when the initial vaccines were received. You should check your recommended doses on the CDC website.
Vaccine information must be verified through the Medicat system. Before the semester begins, please log in to the Medicat system, verify that all of your information is correct, and submit any additional dosage information that might be missing. Your login is your Naropa email and password.
Naropa University students, staff, and faculty may register an exemption to the vaccine requirements for medical, religious, and moral reasons. Exemptions should be processed through the Medicat system. In general, registering an exemption to the vaccine requirement simply means you are not required to receive the vaccine and/or booster doses. It does not give any special permissions to attend classes remotely or otherwise alter delivery options. In case of an outbreak or change in the pandemic, it MAY require additional safety protocols such as additional testing or masking. Should this become necessary, you will be informed by the COVID-19 Task Force.
ALL STUDENTS LIVING IN SNOW LION OR 2333 NAROPA CAMPUS HOUSING MUST BE FULLY VACCINATED, INCLUDING REQUIRED BOOSTERS, AND CANNOT APPLY FOR AN EXEMPTION TO THE VACCINE REQUIREMENT.
Students in our fully online programs, and fully remote faculty and staff, do not need to submit proof of vaccination or apply for an exemption, as long as they are not on campus for any reason.
Do I need to be vaccinated in order to attend classes, retreats, or events in person?
What do I do if I choose not to or am unable to get the vaccine/boosters?
You may register an exception if you are unable to receive the COVID-19 vaccination due to religious, moral, or medical reasons. Exemptions should be registered through the Medicat system: https://naropa.medicatconnect.com/. Anyone who is vaccinated but is unable to/chooses not to receive recommended boosters should submit an exemption through Medicat.
What are the additional safety requirements I may need to follow if I am unvaccinated?
What if I am vaccinated/unvaccinated, and I do not want to attend classes in-person?
At this time, residential courses will be delivered in person. Courses in our fully online programs will be delivered remotely. Except in special circumstances decided by program staff and the COVID-19 task force, there will not be options for dual in-person and remote learning; and, unless state and local mandates change, residential courses will not be delivered online.
Will visitors on campus be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination, a negative test result, or wear a mask?
Retreats/Intensives
How will retreats/intensives take place? How should I prepare for a retreat?
All attendees and staff must submit a negative COVID-19 test result taken no more than 72 hours prior to arriving at the retreat site. PCR tests, rapid tests, and at-home tests are all allowed. PCR tests usually require more time to get results. At-home test results are completed within a few minutes. IF YOU USE AN AT-HOME RAPID TEST, PLEASE TAKE THE TEST EITHER THE EVENING BEFORE OR THE MORNING OF ARRIVAL, BEFORE YOU ARRIVE, so it is more accurate. Take a photo of your test card or results report to show. Be sure to note your name and the date of the test on the test card or in the photo. Your test results will be requested at registration.
Attendees and staff are responsible for providing their own COVID tests. Naropa University does not have a healthcare center nor do we have medical staff – so we are not able to provide COVID-19 testing. You must test prior to arrival, and you should have at least one backup test in case you begin to feel any symptoms. If you arrive without a test result, you will be asked to leave until you can provide one. At-home rapid tests are readily available in most pharmacies including King Soopers, Safeway, Target, Walgreen’s, Costco, and other locations; and you can order free COVID-19 rapid tests through the federal government and the USPS.
Students are required to make transportation arrangements to and from the retreat site and should consider how to transport themselves home or to an isolation location should they need to isolate. Naropa cannot provide transportation or evacuation from the site due to illness or isolation accommodations.
Students who feel ill while on retreat should take a COVID-19 test immediately. It is advisable to bring some at-home tests with you to the retreat, or to be aware of nearby testing locations. Be familiar with isolation and quarantine requirements. Please discuss attendance/missed classes with your retreat/intensive faculty.
If someone tests positive for COVID-19 while on retreat, the other participants may be required to mask, should monitor themselves for symptoms, and should get a COVID test 3–5 days after exposure. Your faculty will provide details. All students should come prepared with well-fitting masks in case usage becomes required.
If the retreat group experiences an outbreak, the retreat may be required to end or move remote—depending upon the retreat leaders and task force decision.
Illness/Exposure
What should I do if I feel ill or test positive for COVID?
ANYONE WHO IS FEELING ILL OR EXPERIENCING COVID-19 SYMPTOMS SHOULD NOT COME TO CAMPUS AND SHOULD STAY AT HOME UNTIL THEY CAN GET A COVID TEST. Upon receipt of a negative test you can return to campus. You might consider wearing a mask to protect those around you from any illness, including COVID-19.
You can check your symptoms through the CDC website.
At-home rapid tests are available in most pharmacies, and there are several testing sites in Boulder County, which you can see here.
Students who must miss class due to illness should contact their faculty members to work out arrangements to stay on track with their classes. Faculty should work with Academic Affairs if they must miss classes. Staff should contact their supervisor if they must miss work.
Diagnostic COVID-19 test: a test that detects a current COVID-19 infection. These tests include PCR, rapid molecular, and antigen tests. Serology tests can check for evidence of past infection or vaccination, but cannot reliably tell if a person currently has COVID-19 so are not considered diagnostic tests. Testing types are explained further on the FDA’s website.
What should I do if I have been exposed to someone with COVID?
If any student, staff, or faculty member becomes aware of a COVID-19 exposure either on campus or off campus, they should follow the CDC recommendations for quarantine. You can find detailed information about quarantine and isolation requirements here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/quarantine-isolation.html
What if I need to miss classes or work due to COVID?
Students who must isolate following a positive test result should notify their individual faculty members and make arrangements with them to stay on track with their classes.
Faculty should have flexible attendance policies that encourage ill students to stay at home while ensuring that students are meeting credit hour requirements. Faculty members can consult with their Program Chair or Dean to assist with any questions.
Anyone who test positive and/or has questions related to exposure risks, isolation or quarantine may contact the COVID-19 Task Force at covid19questions@naropa.edu.
Testing & Masks
When will Naropa require COVID-19 testing and what tests are accepted?
Anyone who is experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19 should seek a COVID-19 test. PCR, rapid, and FDA-approved at-home tests are allowed. The CDC also recommends testing 3–5 days after exposure to a confirmed case of COVID-19, even if you do not have symptoms.
Retreat and intensive attendees will be required to submit a negative COVID test taken no more than 72 hours prior to the start. Rapid and at-home tests should be taken as close to the start as possible.
Local testing locations are listed on the Boulder County COVID-19 information webpage. You can request some free tests through the U.S. Government: https://special.usps.com/testkits. At-home tests are readily available in pharmacies.
Will I be required to wear a mask on campus?
At this time masks are not required on Naropa campuses and in-person events. Masks—and especially KN or N95 masks—are recommended for anyone who is immunocompromised, at high-risk, or wishes to provide extra protection for themselves; and anyone who prefers to continue to wear a mask is supported in doing so.
If you are recovering from COVID-19, you should continue to wear a mask when on campus or around other people for five more days after leaving isolation.
Students on retreat will need to follow the requirement of their retreat and the retreat site, which may be different from Boulder County or Naropa masks requirements.
As always, the mask mandate could be reinstated if circumstances necessitate.
What does it all mean—symptoms, isolation, and quarantine?
COVID-LIKE SYMPTOMS: Symptom information and a self-checker can be accessed here.
ISOLATION: Isolation is when a person has been diagnosed with COVID-19 and must stay home and isolate themselves from other people. Isolation lasts for at least five days (specifically 5 full days after a positive test result) and longer if symptoms are more severe. Find information about how to isolate.
QUARANTINE: Quarantine means keeping separate from other people after a close contact with someone with COVID-19. Find guidance on how to quarantine. Following an exposure, everyone should monitor themselves for symptoms, wear a mask when around other people, and test in 3–5 days.
CLOSE CONTACT: For COVID-19, a close contact is anyone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a total of 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period (for example, three individual 5-minute exposures for a total of 15 minutes). An infected person can spread COVID-19 starting from 2 days before they have any symptoms.
DIAGNOSTIC COVID-19 TEST: A test that detects a current COVID-19 infection. These tests include PCR, rapid molecular, and antigen tests. Antibody tests can check for evidence of past infection or vaccination, but cannot reliably tell if a person currently has COVID-19 so are not considered diagnostic tests. Testing types are explained further on the FDA’s website.
Please send any inquiries to: covid19questions@naropa.edu
