We have put together a collection of guidelines and questions that our students may be asking related to how things will operate this year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Please understand that these guidelines will be ever changing as additional information is known about the virus, additional stipulations and restrictions are identified for the district, and of course as the University makes additional information available. For this reason we encourage you to always revert back to this page before making any plans for any events or meetings. We will be sure to update this page as frequently as we have additional information but the information below is to the best of our knowledge how we are currently planning to operate at any given time. We also encourage you to always plan for alternative approaches as these guidelines may change during your planning process and expectations that were in place when you started planning may no longer be in place by the time your event occurs. As always if you have any questions please reach out to anyone here in OCA and we're happy to assist you with your question.

Indoor Event Vaccine Entry Requirement

As per the Mayor's Update effective February 15, 2022 there is no longer a requirement to show proof of vaccine for entry into indoor events. 

Other Guidelines

  • COVID Restrictions outside of DC

    If your student organization holds an event or attends an event outside of DC it is your responsibility to follow all local jurisdiction rules and COVID guidance AND follow all Catholic rules and COVID guidance. As such, if you are outside of DC in an area that has a less strict policy than DC, you are still required to follow all Catholic University rules. If you are in an area that is more strict than Catholic, you will be required to follow all local jurisdiction rules. These could include but are not limited to:

    • Mask Wearing Indoor or Outdoors
    • Quarantine Requirements 
    • Physical Distancing

    If your group will be sharing common living space (hotel rooms, retreat centers, etc.) for overnight group trips, your organization is permitted to treat the group as a family unit and refrain from wearing masks in each others presence as long as you are not in a space shared with others outside of your family unit. So for example, you would not be required to wear a mask while in your hotel rooms but would still be required to wear a mask in hotel common spaces like hallways, lobbies, etc. 

  • Unvaccinated Student Travel

    As a university in Washington, DC, Catholic University requires all students to follow all Washington DC guidelines. In particular the aspect of this that will likely affect student organizations is the travel restrictions for unvaccinated individuals. If your organization is planning a trip outside of Washington, DC this includes (as of 5/17/21) the requirement that all DC residents (includes college students here for school) who are unvaccinated complete quarantine and testing before and after their trip. Please plan accordingly to ensure that your participants know that if they are unvaccinated they may have additional requirements to be eligible to go on the trip and additional requirements to complete upon returning from the trip. The full travel guidelines can be found at https://coronavirus.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/coronavirus/page_content/attachments/Travel_Guidance_DCHealth_COVID-19_2021-5-17-2021.pdf

    A summary of the guidelines include:

    • Get a COVID-19 test 1-3 days before leaving on their trip AND
    • Get a COVID-19 test 3-5 days after returning home from their trip (this can be coordinated with Student Health Services for on and off campus students) AND
    • Self-quarantine for 7 days after returning home.
      • Even if test is negative, you still must self-quarantine for 7 days.
      • If no test is done, unvaccinated people must self-quarantine for 10 days after
        returning home

    *Club Sports should coordinate with Molly McManamon to schedule additional testing for any travel for unvaccinated players