Message about the Ebola virus
Anna Martin, chair of the emergency management team and vice president for administration, sent the following message to the campus community Aug. 11, 2014 - Ed.
Dear William & Mary community:
I am writing to inform staff, faculty and students about the Ebola virus and precautions the university is taking as we consider the current situation in West Africa. While there is a very low chance of this virus spreading to our region, the Emergency Management Team is actively monitoring CDC and World Health Organization updates.
Currently, the CDC has declared three West Africa countries, Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea, to be Warning Level 3 countries and Nigeria a Warning Level II country, telling travelers to avoid nonessential travel to these countries. Additionally Nigeria has declared a national state of emergency over Ebola. As of today, the U.S. Department of State has issued a Travel Warning for Liberia and Nigeria.
All travelers with university-sponsored trips to the West Africa region should check with their department and with Nick Vasquez, the William & Mary International Travel and Security Manager, before their trip. As always, undergraduate students proposing to travel to countries on the State Department Travel Warning list that is in any way formally connected to William & Mary must apply for a waiver from the university's International Travel Warning Review Committee. The complete list of Travel Warning countries and other updates can be found at travel.state.gov. Additionally, the CDC has posted alerts and best practices when traveling to this region.
At present, we are not aware of any students traveling to or from the affected countries. The Reves Center and the Emergency Management Team will continue to monitor this situation as it develops.
We encourage every student, scholar, staff, and faculty member to familiarize yourself with the CDC and Ebola. You can read more at http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/. In addition, please reference and heed the advice of State Department resources at https://www.osac.gov/. All U.S. citizens traveling abroad should register with the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at travel.state.gov.
Anna B. Martin
Chair, Emergency Management Team
Vice President for Administration
The College of William and Mary