Updated: June 2024
Maine Media is determined to maintain a safe and supportive environment for everyone to create stories and make images together. We continue to monitor resurgences of COVID 19 as well as other respiratory illnesses that have become so common over the past few years. Maine Media closely follows health and safety recommendations from the Federal and Maine State CDC. As of 2023, Maine Media no longer requires proof of vaccination against COVID 19. For your personal safety and the health of the community, we strongly encourage everyone to be up to date with both their vaccinations and booster regiment for COVID-19 and the Flu.
Maine Media encourages all students and faculty to take precautions to limit exposure and any potential spread of illness. As of this writing, face coverings and masks are optional on campus and inside campus labs and facilities. This includes classrooms, darkrooms, the sound stage, studios and all indoor common spaces. Students and faculty are welcome to wear face coverings as they feel necessary. Individual workshops may require the use of face coverings, based on specific circumstances of the class or facility. This will be clearly indicated by the instructors in advance of the start of the workshop. Maine Media policy may be revised in response to changing health and safety conditions.
As always, the health and safety of our community remains a priority. We ask that you continue to practice safe social distancing, and use hand sanitizer provided around campus. If you are in need of a mask, they are available at the desk in the HAAS Building or in the Thorne Dining Pavilion. We also encourage you to carry health and travelers insurance.
The Maine Media team will continue to monitor health and safety guidance from local and national CDC offices, and will adjust requirements and guidance accordingly. We sincerely appreciate your consideration. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or concerns about these policies.
In your service,
Michael, Mansfield, President
COVID-19 Campus Safety Guide
Information here will be updated regularly to reflect the most recent guidelines provided by the Maine CDC.
CDC COVID-19 INFORMATION
TRAVELING TO MAINE
GROUP SIZE INFORMATION
FACE COVERINGS
PHYSICAL DISTANCING
HAND HYGIENE
COMMUNICATION
CONTACT TRACING
IN CASE OF EXPOSURE, ILLNESS & TESTING
CLEANING & DISINFECTING
RESOURCES
PAST UPDATES
Maine Media Workshops + College COVID-19 Risk Statement
Maine Media consistently seeks to take steps to minimize the risk of COVID-19 infections (or any other spread of disease) in accordance with applicable law, regulation, and guidance provided by health authorities. These efforts may include policies and safeguards implemented by Maine Media such as symptom checks, social distancing, use of facial coverings, and isolating and quarantining when required. Despite these efforts, Maine Media cannot categorically guarantee that any person entering Maine Media campus or facilities will not contract COVID-19 or any other communicable disease and any such person must assess and accept the risks of illness or injury for themselves.
CDC COVID-19 Information
Find links to guidance and information on all topics related to COVID-19, including the COVID-19 vaccine, symptoms, treatment, testing and the latest data.
Traveling to Maine
Travelers from all states are able to travel to Maine without providing a negative COVID-19 test result, quarantining or providing a vaccination card.
As circumstances dictate, the Maine CDC may revise and implement new testing and quarantine protocols at any time. Maine Media will adhere to guidelines set forth by state authorities.
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Group Size Information
ON CAMPUS
Maine Media does not have a limit on group size.
As circumstances dictate, the Maine CDC may make adjustments to Group Size requirements. Maine Media will adhere to guidelines set forth by state authorities.
OFF CAMPUS
Maine does not have a capacity limit and physical distancing requirements for public indoor and outdoor gatherings.
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Face Coverings
ON CAMPUS
All face coverings and masks are optional on campus and inside campus labs and facilities. This includes classrooms, darkrooms, the sound stage, studios and all indoor common spaces. Students and faculty are welcome to wear face coverings as they feel necessary. Individual workshops may require the use of face coverings, based on specific circumstances of the class or facility. This will be clearly indicated by the instructors in advance of the start of the workshop.
If you need a mask, KN95 masks are available at the desk in the HAAS Building or in the Thorne Dining Pavilion.
OFF CAMPUS
Maine does not require face masks.
Physical Distancing
ON CAMPUS
We ask that you continue to practice safe social distancing, and use hand sanitizer provided around campus.
As circumstances dictate, the Maine CDC may make adjustments to physical distancing requirements. Maine Media will adhere to guidelines set forth by state authorities
OFF CAMPUS
Maine has no capacity limits and physical distancing requirements for public indoor and outdoor gatherings.
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Hand Hygiene
Good hand hygiene prevents spread of disease. The best hand hygiene is frequent handwashing. Wash hands or use alcohol-based hand sanitizer (at least 60% alcohol) especially between contact with individuals.
Hand washing may be done in Maine Media’s campus bathrooms located in the NIC building, Haas Building, and the Focus Building.
Hand sanitizer stations are located at the entrance to each building on campus.
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Communication
All students, faculty and staff please update contact information regarding emergency notifications with Student Services. This will allow Maine Media to best communicate with you.
Email: The President may send email updates at key junctures to keep the community advised.
Web site/s: Maine Media is posting regular updates and information to a one-stop source web site for Covid-19 information: www.mainemedia.edu/covid19. The web site also connects to more information from the Maine and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
If you have a question not answered by any of this guidance you may contact Student Services at 207.236.8581.
Emergencies: A warning will be issued through Maine Media’s email and may also be issued through text messages and/or cell phone calls. The emergency warning will be distributed to all Maine Media’s students, staff, instructors, and other attendees who are present on campus. The emergency notification will include instructions for appropriate action. To view complete policy – Emergency Notification Policy
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Contact Tracing
Contact tracing is a fundamental public health activity that involves working with an individual who has been diagnosed with an infectious disease to identify and provide support to people who may have been infected through exposure to the infected person. To facilitate contact tracing by the Maine CDC, Maine Media may maintain a record of information about students, staff, instructors and other attendees, the date they were at Maine Media, and the possible individuals who had direct, prolonged interaction with them.
Based on current scientific knowledge, a close contact is someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for a total of 15 minutes or more starting from 48 hours before illness onset until the time the patient is isolated. An individual is also considered a close contact if they provided care at home to someone who is sick with COVID-19, had direct physical contact with the person (hugged or kissed them), shared eating or drinking utensils, or if the person sneezed, coughed, or somehow got respiratory droplets on them.
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In Case of Exposure, Illness & Testing
What do I do if I feel I may be sick with COVID-19?
– If you feel sick please quarantine in your room or home and notify Kerry Curren, Registrar as soon as possible at 207.236.2705 or by email at [email protected]. For results, you may request a rapid test from Maine Media.
– Individuals may be asked to be isolated until transferred to home or a healthcare facility on a case by case basis.
Where can I get tested?
-Individuals may contact Walk-in Care at Pen Bay Medical Center directly to request a COVID-19 test by calling 207-301-6000.
The Walk-In Care is located at 22 White Street Rockland, ME 04841.
Hours: 8 am to 6 pm daily
Walgreens offers no-cost, contactless COVID-19 testing for patients age 3 and up at select locations, in partnership with the PWNHealth provider network. Rockland Walgreens located at 28 Park St, Rockland, ME 04841, offers the COVID-19 test (7 miles south of campus). Walgreens in Camden does NOT offer testing.
Must I get tested after a close contact with someone who has COVID-19 if I am fully vaccinated?
– No, but please follow the recommendations of the CDC.
When may I return to class or work after testing positive for COVID-19?
The ill individual(s) may return based on the CDC’s Respiratory Illness Guidelines.
If an individual needs urgent medical attention (e.g., if the individual is having difficulty breathing), Maine Media will call 911.
Maine Media may need to work with public health officials to determine who may have had close contact with the individual with COVID-19 and who may need to take additional precautions, including exclusion from campus and remaining at home.
If an individual informs Maine Media that they tested positive for COVID-19, Maine Media may call the Maine CDC at 1-800-821-5821.
Cleaning and Disinfecting
The virus that causes COVID-19 can land on surfaces. It is possible for people to become infected if they touch those surfaces and then touch their nose, mouth, or eyes. In most situations, the risk of infection from touching a surface is low. The most reliable way to prevent infection from surfaces is to regularly wash hands or use hand sanitizer.
If there has been a sick person or someone who tested positive for COVID-19 within the last 24 hours, Maine Media will clean AND disinfect the space.
Resources
State of Maine COVID-19 Response
Maine Center for Disease Control (CDC)
US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Walgreens COVID testing
Maine Media COVID-19
Maine Media General Policies
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Past Updates
July 12, 2022
August 12, 2021
May 24, 2021
April 14, 2021
March 31, 2021
November 20, 2020
July 24, 2020
March 20, 2020
March 6, 2020
April 22, 2020
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