Dear Howard University Community,

Yesterday, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser issued an update regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. In her report she stated D.C. is in Stage 2 of the re-opening plan, the total case count stands at 11,571; the total lives lost is 581; the D.C. hospital capacity is 81 percent; and the positivity rate is 2.8 percent.

Among her updates, it is important to share the new travel restrictions into D.C. that local colleges and universities will be required to follow. Consistent with new D.C. requirements, students traveling from hot spot states must be quarantined on campus in appropriate housing, or in their off-campus housing, for 14 days, or until a negative COVID-19 test result is obtained after 3-5 days of quarantine. Currently, the hotspot states are listed as: Arizona, California, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. Once students arrive on campus, we are discouraging domestic travel, and non-essential travel outside of the DMV (District, Maryland, Virginia region) region. Howard University will outline this new requirement and add the details to the Fall Re-opening Plan and website.

Students will be required to report, through an online travel registry portal, if they are traveling outside of the DMV during the academic year. Students traveling to an identified hot spot during the academic year will also be subject to the quarantine rule upon return.

The added precautions, which will impact both students, D.C. residents and visitors alike, have been implemented with everyone’s general safety in mind. While this may seem like a laborious process, it will further assist us with making sure our campus community is safer.

Thank you for your attention to this matter and we will continue to bring you real-time updates as available.

Excellence in Truth and Service,

Anthony K. Wutoh, Ph.D., R.Ph.
Provost and Chief Academic Officer