Spring quarter to continue current virtual course patterns

Posted on February 24, 2021March 8, 2021

It’s almost a year since most UW students, faculty and staff transitioned to remote class and work. With the exception of the Health Sciences schools, the Seattle, Bothell and Tacoma campuses have been quiet despite full workloads.

Most classes will remain virtual during spring quarter, as President Cauce and Provost Richards detailed in January, along with early thinking about the University’s outlook for summer and fall. If case numbers continue to fall, precautionary measures like face coverings and distancing are followed, and vaccine supply increases, it’s possible more in-person activities could happen in the next few months.

Cherry blossom season is an especially beautiful time on the Seattle campus, but again this year the best way to enjoy the blossoms will be virtually. UW will again provide live web-camera access and discourage in-person visits. View the blossom announcement here for more details.

COVID-19 testing site opens in UW parking lot E1

Posted on January 19, 2021August 25, 2022

This post contains information that was accurate at time of publication – January 2021 – but is now outdated. For current information regarding COVID Testing, please visit COVID-19 Testing and Locations | UW Medicine.

A new, free COVID-19 testing site is now available to the public in the University of Washington’s E1 parking lot off Montlake Blvd NE just south of University Village.

To schedule a test at the E1 site and view details, click here.

Testing location:
Montlake Blvd NE & Walla Walla Rd
Seattle, WA 98105
(206) 477-3977

UW students, faculty or staff already enrolled in the Husky Coronavirus Testing program should continue to use access to testing through HCT rather than the new E1 site so that HCT enrollee testing data remain part of that program.

For more resources and additional COVID-19 testing locations offered by UW Medicine, visit https://www.uwmedicine.org/coronavirus/testing

For more resources and additional COVID-19 testing locations in King County, visit: https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/covid-19/testing.aspx

TC3 moves to UW for winter quarter 2021

Posted on December 23, 2020

Despite rainy, gray weather this past Saturday and Sunday, UW students, staff and faculty turned out to help residents of Tent City 3 move from Trinity United Methodist Church in Seattle’s Crown Hill neighborhood to their new, three-month home in UW’s W35 parking lot near NE Pacific St. and Brooklyn Ave. In addition to the normal lifting, lugging, packing and unpacking involved in moving 40 people, COVID-19 precautions were incorporated. Volunteers watched their distance, wore their masks and washed their hands frequently.

For those unfamiliar with its history, TC3 is a long-time self-governed community of homeless individuals and families. The camp moves every 90 days in the greater Seattle area utilizing invitations to church parking lots and other properties. TC3 screens potential residents for sex offender status and does not allow drugs, alcohol, harassment or violence. The average time someone lives at TC3 varies from a few days to several months.

TC3’s residency at UW this quarter follows the first TC3 residency at UW in winter quarter of 2017, the first hosting of a sanctioned community of homeless people by a public university. UW grounded the decision to host in 2017 on the University’s academic mission. More than a dozen classroom and clinical courses connected students and TC3 residents in 2017.

The decision by UW to host again came as a result of advocacy by Tent City Collective, a group of UW students, alumni and Tent City 3 residents looking to repeat the success of 2017. However, the pandemic changed UW’s instructional approach after the commitment to host TC3 had been made. This year’s academic interactions with Tent City 3 are likely to be largely virtual with the exception of clinical courses.

Pandemic precautions added more to the planning. TC3 will have a lower cap on maximum resident numbers while at UW in order to ensure adequate camp spacing. The camp will have extra hand-washing stations. Public Health Seattle & King County has had and will retain responsibility for regular coronavirus testing at TC3 and will provide contact tracing if required.

To learn more about the TC3 at UW and UW’s broader work on homelessness, visit UW’s Addressing Homelessness webpage.

Contact the Tent City Collective if you’re interested in volunteering. Visit them on Facebook or email tentcity@uw.edu.

To donate food or supplies to TC3, visit their webpage.

For questions about the hosting decision and logistics, email regional@uw.edu.

UW prepares to welcome back Tent City 3

Posted on November 16, 2020

Students, faculty and staff joined Tent City 3 residents to help the community move in Dec. 2016. Photo: University of Washington

Homelessness continues to be a crisis in our region as well as the nation. UW students, staff and faculty continue to respond in a variety of ways including by welcoming back Tent City 3 to the Seattle campus for 90 days during winter quarter 2021. UW hosted TC3 for the first time in winter 2017.

Tent City 3 is a self-managed community providing safe, secure temporary housing to individuals, couples and families, rotating locations every three months. While not a solution to homelessness, organized encampments provide safe spaces for people to sleep, eat and live. Many TC3 residents work. Often the camp includes families with children who have no other place to turn.

Tent City 3 will be hosted in the same location as it was in 2017, parking lot W35, situated between Wallace Hall and the Fishery Sciences buildings off NE Pacific St. near Brooklyn Ave. NE.

The request to bring Tent City 3 back came from the Tent City Collective—a group of UW students and faculty working with Tent City 3 residents. TCC’s proposal for hosting TC3 centers on academic, clinical and service learning opportunities in line with the UW’s educational mission.

In light of the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s TC3 residency will be different. Tent City 3 already works with King County Public Health to access to testing and contact tracing for the TC3 community. As part of the agreement with UW regarding the residency, TC3 will provide a COVID-19 prevention plan. It’s likely that UW course connections with TC3 will be virtual, utilizing iPads, except for clinical courses like those from MEDEX.

If you would like to learn more, please visit https://www.uw.edu/community/homelessness/. The site includes an FAQ. As with the previous residency in 2017, the memorandum of agreement between UW and Tent City 3 and the project operations and safety plan will be posted there.

The Tent City Collective is always looking for students staff and faculty who want to help. You can connect with TCC via Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/tentcitycollective/

If you’d like to contribute food or supplies during TC3’s stay, please visit the TC3 website here http://www.sharewheel.org/tent-city-3.

Greek Housing COVID-19 Response

Posted on October 30, 2020October 30, 2020

In response to the recent COVID-19 outbreak in Greek housing, the University of Washington has been working with these students, State and local authorities on strategies to reduce case numbers.

The Governor’s Office recently issued a proclamation establishing guidelines for higher education housing, including off-campus Greek housing. This proclamation limits the number of people who can share a room, limits the size of gatherings and requires people to wear a masks in common areas. It also requires colleges and universities to provide isolation and quarantine housing to off-campus students who request it.

To reduce parties and other gatherings during this pandemic, the University is working with the City of Seattle and Public Health – Seattle & King County on strategies to educate and remind students about protective practices and restrictions during the pandemic. This strategy includes outreach to students, increased UW Police presence north of campus, and special emphasis patrols during Halloween and on football gamedays to reduce gatherings. The University is also actively discouraging tailgating on gamedays. Access to UW parking lots for gatherings on game days will be prohibited.

If you see parties or other gatherings flouting COVID-19 prevention in the neighborhood, you can report your concerns to David Hotz (dhotz@uw.edu) at the UW’s Office of Greek Life or to the Community Standards and Student Conduct Office (cssc@uw.edu). Please include the address, relative size of group, and time/date of the gathering.

Although there is still work to do, COVID-19 case numbers in the Greek system seem to be slowing. Many students are working hard to keep themselves and their houses healthy and their focus is making a difference.

You can track UW community case numbers at the University’s case tracking dashboard.