December 31, 2021 | Important Announcement regarding Spring Semester

Dear Students,

A week has gone by since our last email update, and unfortunately, the COVID situation has gotten significantly worse due to the Omicron variant. New York City is facing an unprecedented level of COVID transmission, which is causing severe disruption to travel, testing capacity and timely results, and general services and staffing provided by the city. As many other schools and performing arts organizations have already done, we feel we have no choice but to make temporary adjustments to our academic plan for January. 

In discussion with our medical consultants, we remain hopeful that this current wave of cases will peak soon and that appropriate testing options will become more available in the coming weeks. We also know that, while much more contagious, Omicron’s incubation period is shorter and associated illness in the vaccinated is generally less severe than with past variants. In addition, it is increasingly clear that having a “booster” shot is extremely helpful in warding off serious illness. Because we are requiring that anyone who is eligible for a booster shot receive it by January 15, we will soon have yet another important layer of protection on our side. 

With these facts in mind, we will begin the Spring Semester on January 10 with one week of online-only work. Our plan is to return to in-person work on Tuesday, January 18, immediately following the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. After much consideration, we believe this will put some distance between the New Year’s holiday and the start of in-person work, allowing the current testing issues to resolve, giving everyone who is eligible the time to get their booster shot, and allowing for disruptions to travel and other NYC services to improve.

Important details of this change are as follows, please read carefully:

• All classroom work will be fully online for the week of January 10. Other studio and ensemble performance work that week will be moved online, cancelled, or postponed as appropriate. Individual departments will be in touch next week with more details. Individual music lessons for the week of January 10 should be rescheduled and made up at a later date, or done online.
• If you are not currently in New York City, please delay your travel back, and instead make plans to arrive on Saturday, January 15. We are working with a testing company to provide on-campus testing all day on Sunday, January 16, with what we hope will be reasonable turn-around times for results. Tentatively please plan to come to campus on Sunday, January 16 to get tested, as we do not yet know whether reliable outside testing options will be available at that time.
• Residence Hall students approved to stay on campus during the winter break may remain in the Residence Hall. Residence Hall students who did not request accommodations over the winter break should plan to return on January 15—if that creates undue hardship, please be in touch with [email protected] and appropriate accommodations will be considered. Please make every attempt to adjust your travel plans before requesting an accommodation—most airlines are allowing changes without additional fees at this time.
• Booster shots will be required for all who are eligible by January 15. Complete details on our booster requirement will be sent out next week.
• The Diamond Building will remain open and accessible for those who need it for individual work or to Zoom into a class. However, if you can work from home until January 15, we strongly encourage you to do so.
• Until further notice, everyone using the Diamond Building must remain masked at all times, even for performance-related activities, unless you are alone in a room or eating. This includes actors and singers. Winds and Brass players should be masked at all times when not playing, and should use a bell cover on their instrument when playing. When eating, you should remain 6 feet away from others and replace your masks as soon as you finish. We will revisit these protocols before our return to in-person work on January 18.
• The Library will be open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday through Friday, beginning Monday, January 3. Extended hours (8:30 am to 9:00 pm Monday through Thursday, 8:30 am to 7:00 pm on Friday, 9:00 am to 6:00 pm on Saturday) will resume on Tuesday, January 18. Sunday hours (2:00 to 7:00 pm) will resume at a later date.
• The Juilliard Store will continue to take online orders for textbooks and other materials, which our team will fulfill the week of January 3. The Store will re-open for curbside pickup on January 3. We are planning for a return to normal Store operation on and after January 18.
• In general, anyone with COVID, sore throat, congestion, fatigue, cough, fever, or other flu-like symptoms should stay home. And of course, if you test positive or are a close contact of someone who tests positive, please report that via this form so that we can provide you with further guidance and support.

Many of you have written in the last week or so, some expressing concern about returning to in-person work under these circumstances, and some expressing the exact opposite. We understand your anxiety and your frustration, and are here to provide support wherever possible. Our goal is to quickly and safely return to in-person work for the duration of the spring semester, and we feel that this short delay while Omicron peaks will give us the best chance of doing just that.

In the meantime, have a safe and healthy New Year.

Sincerely,

Adam Meyer
Provost