Together Safely Policy Dashboard Offers Heightened Transparency Into Pandemic Management Efforts

August 17, 2021

Albion College, one of the top 50 innovative liberal arts colleges in the country, announced today the school’s Together Safely COVID-19 Policy Dashboard, which tracks transmission and case data across the campus community with correlating safety policies. Albion College President Dr. Mathew Johnson made the announcement.

Building on the success of the Spring 2021 semester, the goal of the Together Safely COVID-19 Policy Dashboard is to provide students, faculty, staff, families and the greater community with transparent information ahead of and throughout the Fall 2021 semester. The dashboard, which was created in consultation with the Calhoun County Public Health Department (CCPHD), is intended to provide a transparent look at policy-making, and will be adjusted to reflect local and national best practices for COVID-19 mitigation as data is collected and analyzed.

“Safety, transparency and risk mitigation have been and will continue to be our priorities,” said Matt Arend, Associate Dean for Wellness. “With significant experience and knowledge gained during the 2020/2021 academic year, we are better equipped to welcome students back safely and make real-time adjustments to our protocols as the pandemic continues to evolve.”

In May, Albion College announced that all students, faculty and staff are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 to return to campus for the Fall 2021 semester—the first school in Michigan to do so. Vaccine verification or verified exemptions were due August 1, 2021. To date, over 80% of respondents are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

“I am proud of the action that members of our community have taken to protect themselves and others,” said Dr. Johnson. “Proactive risk management from our COVID-19 task force and responsible decision making on behalf of our students, faculty and staff are our bedrocks to a successful semester. With these measures in place, a commitment to ongoing communication and our vaccine adoption rate, we are eager to welcome students back for in-person instruction in the coming weeks.” 

The Together Safely COVID-19 Policy Dashboard and more details on Albion’s approach to the Fall 2021 semester, including important updates regarding both academics and student activities, can be found on the College’s Together Safely website. 

About Albion College

Albion College is a private liberal arts college of approximately 1,500 students and is nationally recognized for its academic excellence in the liberal arts tradition, a learning-centered commitment and a future-oriented perspective. The College is a leader in preparing students to anticipate, solve and prevent problems in order to improve the human and global condition. Albion immerses students in the creation and processing of knowledge and graduates skilled architects of societal change, active citizens and future leaders. The College is dedicated to the highest quality in undergraduate education and is committed to diversity as a core institutional value.

Albion, Michigan is a culturally diverse community in the south-central part of the state. The College recognizes the value of community, both on- and off-campus and has invested resources in supporting the revitalization of the greater Albion community. This work offers an increasingly vibrant city around the campus that provides students with a fuller experience as they prepare to become engaged citizens in their own communities. For more information, visit albion.edu.