Margaret Hazlett margaret.hazlett@fandm.edu
Mon, Mar 9, 3:44 PM
Dear F&M community members:
As awareness as well as concern around the coronavirus and COVID-19 increase, it is important for the campus community to be sensitive and supportive of all our members. We currently have no individuals on campus who are considered to be under suspicion for coronavirus.
You may have seen an increase in the number of students wearing facemasks. F&M’s international students come from a variety of countries where the use of facemasks is an everyday precaution against illness. Please be aware that the choice to wear a facemask does not necessarily mean the person is ill. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention there is no benefit for healthy individuals to wear a mask as a preventive measure against coronavirus, but it is customary in some cultures to wear a facemask as an everyday precaution against illness. We should not assume that every individual wearing a facemask is ill. Nor should we avoid or ostracize these individuals.
F&M is a vibrant global community and cultural differences are our strength. At this time of anxiety around COVID-19, let us be especially attentive to the ways our actions might single out some community members and make them feel unwelcome.
Margaret L. Hazlett
Vice President and Dean of Student Affairs
Sue Mennicke
Associate Dean for International Programs
Amy A. Myers, MD
Managing Physician of the Student Wellness Center