As America honors its veterans today, let us all pause, reflect, and extend a heartfelt Thank You to the veterans in our classrooms and offices among our students, faculty, and staff. We commend these heroes for their courage, and we thank them and their families for the sacrifices they have made on behalf of our nation and its citizens. Because of their service, we experience and enjoy the privilege of a world of greater security, freedom, and liberty. The University of Mississippi is honored to support each one of you and support your preparation for the next stage of your legacy of service and leadership.
Update Regarding Revised Deadlines for Federal Vaccine Mandate for Employees
To all faculty, staff, and student employees,
In a message to you last week, I promised that the university would monitor and adapt to changes to the federal government’s COVID vaccination mandate for federal contractors. At that time, based on new federal guidance, I announced that the university would not place employees on leave if they were not fully vaccinated by Dec. 8, and we notified employees that they had until Jan. 3, 2022, to receive at least one shot of the vaccine of their choice.
At the end of last week, the federal government changed its guidance once again that prompted us to make another slight adjustment to our plan. Under guidance released last Thursday, employees are required to receive both shots of a two-dose vaccine, or one shot of a one-dose vaccine, by Jan. 4. We will continue to work with employees who have shown a good faith effort to become fully vaccinated by Jan. 4.
This new guidance for federal contractors should not be confused with the new COVID vaccination mandate for private employers that was also issued last week. While the vaccination mandate for private employers was temporarily halted this weekend by a court order, it does not impact the federal contractor mandate that applies to the university. We will inform you if the federal contractor mandate is halted by a court.
Employees can visit the federal mandate information page of the university’s COVID website to see details about how to upload vaccination cards or how to apply for an accommodation. We have started reviewing submitted requests for religious and medical accommodations.
Please remember that we are operating vaccine clinics on campus. Visit the university’s COVID website to see the schedule for upcoming clinics. I appreciate your patience as we continue to adjust our plan based on the evolving federal guidance.
Sincerely,
Glenn F. BoyceChancellor
Update on Deadline for COVID-19 Vaccine Requirement for Employees
To all faculty, staff, and student employees,
This message is an update for you on an important matter to all of our employees regarding COVID vaccination. Before getting into the details, I ask for your patience as we continue to receive and monitor updated guidance from officials in Washington, D.C., and we are now reaching out to share what we have learned with you.
I sent an email on Oct. 25 to all university employees regarding the federal Executive Order that requires COVID-19 vaccinations by December 8, 2021, for all employees working on federal contracts and employees working in federal contractor workplaces. Based upon the guidance available at that time, the university indicated that employees who had not provided proof that they were fully vaccinated or received a medical or religious accommodation by Dec. 8 would be placed on unpaid leave until they provided proof of vaccination. In addition, the message indicated that employees with pending accommodation requests would be placed on paid leave while the accommodation request was evaluated.
On Nov. 1, federal officials issued clarifying guidance that now permits us to allow unvaccinated employees to continue to work after the Dec. 8 deadline “through a limited period of counseling and education.” Under the new guidance, employees do not need to be removed from the workplace unless these efforts result in “continued noncompliance.” Consistent with the latitude provided by the new guidance, university employees who are not fully vaccinated as of Dec. 8 will be allowed to continue working and not be placed on a leave of absence.
Unvaccinated employees and those employees who have not submitted proof of vaccination will be permitted to continue to work and remain on the payroll until Jan. 3, 2022, while the university continues to counsel and educate these employees on the need to get vaccinated. Employees who are not fully vaccinated by Jan. 3 (and who have not demonstrated a good faith effort to become fully vaccinated by having received at least one dose of the vaccine of their choice) or who have not received an accommodation may be separated from employment. If you are separated from employment for failing to become fully vaccinated, you may be eligible for rehire to an open position if the vaccine mandate is ever rescinded.
Employees who have a pending accommodation request as of Jan. 3 will be allowed to continue working until review of their request is completed. If an accommodation request is denied, the employee will be given a reasonable period of time to act promptly and become fully vaccinated. Here are the links to get more information and learn how to submit a request for an accommodation:
Thank you for doing your part to help the university work toward compliance on this matter. I am mindful that these developments present a difficult challenge for some of you. We will continue to monitor further updates or clarification of the federal guidance, and we will continue to modify our plans to comply with the Executive Order based on new information.
Sincerely,
Glenn F. BoyceChancellor
At the Flagship, October 2021
CHANCELLOR’S 3 THINGS TO KNOW
Greetings! Over the past few weeks, fall colors have popped across our beautiful campus — a fitting sight following our special designation as a Tree Campus by the Arbor Day Foundation. The distinction reflects our ongoing commitment to caring for our green spaces for generations of students, alumni, and employees to enjoy, especially our crown jewel green space, the Grove. We’ve enjoyed a flurry of activity on campus in recent weeks, highlighted by the celebration for Eli Manning and the retirement of his #10 in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Our Rebels did the job this past weekend in taking out LSU and cracking the Top 10 in the rankings. Let’s keep up the momentum this weekend in Auburn! Here are three important things to know about the university right now:
At the Flagship September 2021
CHANCELLOR’S 3 THINGS TO KNOW
Hotty Toddy! What an exciting time to be an Ole Miss Rebel as we welcomed friends and families back to the Grove with so much passion and positivity to celebrate our first two home football games. It has been exhilarating to join you in cheering our team on to its 3-0 start. Off the field, our students are in the full swing of the fall semester after five weeks of in-class learning. We owe a hearty thank you to our faculty and staff for all their efforts to return to our classrooms and labs. Looking ahead, there is so much more excitement to come, but for now, here are three things to know:
Celebrating and Honoring Don Cole and Larry Martindale
Dear students, faculty, and staff,
What a glorious day at the University of Mississippi! In an inspiring and rousing ceremony held earlier today, we marked the introduction of the newly renamed Martindale-Cole Student Services Center by honoring two extraordinary members of our university family — Don Cole and Larry Martindale.
In the ever-changing life of a flagship university, historical milestones present moments that illustrate who we are as an institution and what we stand for. Sometimes, the significance is revealed only after the moment has passed. At other times, we are blessed to recognize the magnitude of the moment as it is happening. Today’s renaming is one of those moments for our beloved university.
Our arrival at this moment was forged through two divergent paths. One is the 50-year dedication of Dr. Donald Cole, who served this university as a student, professor, and administrator and was a tireless and fearless advocate for diversity, equity, and students from all backgrounds.
The other is the commitment of the original namesake of the building, Mr. Larry Martindale, a distinguished alumnus from Atlanta, a former Ole Miss basketball player and longtime university supporter. During a campus visit, Larry was inspired to ask how he could help the university to project the powerful diversity he witnessed on campus.
The convergence of their stories, resulting in the renaming of the Martindale-Cole Student Services Center, serves a uniting and noble purpose in the life of our university. At its core, this renaming is a testament to two esteemed and courageous individuals, how they have helped to shape this place as a welcoming university, and how their investments of time, talents, and treasure will ensure that we continue to be a university where everyone succeeds. I encourage you to learn more about the remarkable and inspiring stories of these two men.
We’re so pleased that generations of current and future students will continue to have Dr. Cole’s example shaping their education. This tribute ensures his journey will always be remembered, will always be on display, and will always be celebrated by our university.
Sincerely,
Glenn F. Boyce
Chancellor