As you have heard, following the identification of COVID-19 cases in Johnson County, the University of Iowa is suspending face-to-face instruction for two weeks following spring break. The university will move to virtual instruction beginning March 23, 2020, and continue remotely through at least April 3, 2020.

To align with this decision and proactively maintain the health and safety of our community, we are asking all student organizations affiliated with Tippie to suspend all in-person meetings and events between March 23rd and April 3rd. Social distancing, less frequent face-to-face contact with other people, has been proven to substantially reduce the spread of illness like COVID-19. In that spirit, you can continue to conduct business as an organization but you must do so without convening as a group, face-to-face.

University sponsored travel within the United States has not been suspended during this time, but we strongly recommend postponing if your trip falls between March 23rd-April 3rd.  To discourage your travel, we will not be providing logistical support for those trips, and if they involve Tippie funds, we will withhold funds until we better understand the need for travel. Many other universities and companies are suspending non-essential domestic travel.

Steps to take as you alter travel plans:

• Reach out to your hotel or travel agency contacts for cancelation policies  
• Contact businesses you plan on visiting because many are imposing restrictions
• Contact the SOBO office if you have questions regarding payment and/or refunds

We are canceling the March 27th face-to-face executive community meeting.  We will email resources for creating infographics in the next week along with end-of-year information. Reach out to your liaison if you have further questions.

Currently, the Student Leadership Awards Reception is still scheduled, so please submit student organization award nominations. If the dates for social distancing are extended, and we do not convene in person, we will still be making awards and celebrating our accomplishments in some fashion. So please nominate!

Tippie community members need to do more than not attend face-to-face classes to help slow the spread of this virus; we need to stop face-to-face meetings in any group larger than 4-5 people. Please join us in helping keep our community healthy by advocating for social distancing among the members of your organization.