I am writing to echo the recent note from the Chancellor, that we are continuing to operate at our present state of greatly reduced research activity, which is limited to that which is absolutely necessary for student graduation, required maintenance, and to meet required milestones for externally sponsored programs.

New experimental activity which meets these critical needs that can be completed in one or two days may also occur, but ​new long-term experiments should not be initiated unless approved as essential. All other activity should be conducted off-campus to maximize health-related safety of all in the community.

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The Office of Research and Engagement is working remotely to support the needs of our research community and encourages faculty to continue to submit new proposals.There are already several new opportunities emerging, which ORE staff will update announcements as more come available.

We remain on a reduced status of research activity. At this point, laboratory activities should be limited to those which are necessary for student graduation, regular maintenance, and meeting required milestones for externally sponsored programs. New experimental activity that can be completed in one or two days may also occur, but long-term experiments should not be initiated. All other activity should be off-campus or  conducted via Zoom meetings to maximize safety of all in the community. Research advisors should be working with students to enable remote work where possible, while assuring lab activities are, without exception, safely operated including the addition of maximum social distancing, maintaining clean surfaces, and other safe hygiene practices.

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In order to protect staff who cannot perform their job remotely and who are required to work on site at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL has imposed restrictions on access to the Laboratory to reduce the likelihood of spread of COVID-19. Access for visitors who have traveled through foreign countries has been suspended. Access for visitors who have recently traveled outside East Tennessee must be cleared through ORNL Health Services, which will prohibit access by individuals whose travel placed them at high risk of exposure. ORNL is also restricting access to the Laboratory for our own employees based on their travel and travel of their household members. Applying CDC guidelines and applicable medical practices, affected employees are directed to self-isolate at home for 14 days to avoid potential spread of COVID-19 at the Lab. Continue reading →

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The Emergency Operations Center (EOC) has had the opportunity to review the ~ 500 contingency plans from UT Knoxville, the UT Institute of Agriculture, the UT Space Institute, and the Graduate School of Medicine. The EOC is now developing a coordinated campus-level approach for supporting the implementation of these plans, if needed. Their present focus is on the plans that have self-identified as “essential.” Continue reading →