COVID-19 Message

President Rogers has announced that in order to help stop the spread of COVID-19, BGSU will be shifting the majority of its employees to work remotely from their homes beginning Monday, March 23. Starting then, on-campus research will be limited to the performance of only those activities that are critical to the viability of a particular project as determined by the faculty research director (PI). In addition, the offices of the VPREE, Sponsored Programs & Research, and Research Compliance, including the Institutional Review Board (IRB) and the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), will begin working remotely but will remain fully operational throughout this time. Personnel in the University Animal Facilities will continue to operate these facilities in-person according to its emergency management plan.

As the university moves towards a situation in which only essential personnel will be allowed to work on campus, please ask your research faculty to prepare for this in the following ways:

• Inform their research personnel (students, post-docs, etc.) how to work remotely in performing such work as data analysis, writing, and literature reviews;
• Work to discontinue those studies and experiments that can only be performed on-campus;
• Carefully consider if field work can be performed in a way that adheres to the CDC guidelines for stopping the spread of disease and maintains appropriate social distancing between participants;
• Create a contact list of all research personnel and continue to communicate regularly with their research team via web or teleconferencing throughout this emergency;
• For laboratory research, properly secure all hazardous materials in long-term storage, ensure that all flammables are properly stored, secure all gas cylinders, and remove all chemicals and glassware from bench tops and fume hoods to properly store them;
• For research involving human subjects, review your protocol and consult with the Office of Research Compliance to determine if amendments are needed to continue your study. For questions, contact orc@bgsu.edu;
• For questions about animal research contact Jenifer Baranski, Director of the University Animal Facilities at jbarans@bgsu.edu;
• For questions about the implication of COVID-19 to your externally sponsored research or external grant applications, contact the Office of Sponsored Programs & Research at ospr@bgsu.edu .
• As stated in an earlier communication, please do not hesitate to use the FAQ list on the BGSU novel coronavirus website to pose any additional questions you might have. Alternatively, contact me directly at mogawa@bgsu.edu with any concerns.

Sincerely,

Michael Ogawa

Vice President for Research and Economic Engagement