The library on each Kennesaw State campus remains open despite face to face instruction being suspended for the rest of the semester. Measures have been taken by the university to ensure workers are working in sanitary environments.
The Horace Stirgus Library and Lawrence Johnson Library will stay open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday to Friday and close on weekends. Library access is restricted to the ground floor computer rooms while all other floors will remain closed, according to the KSU library website.
“The libraries on both campuses remain open only to students and operate with minimal staff in order to provide computer services to students who need assistance accessing certain technologies, programs or computing systems,” Assistant Vice President of Strategic Communications Tammy Demel said.
All University System of Georgia institutions will stay open with limited staffing so that critical services can still be provided, according to an update on KSU’s coronavirus site. Actions to ensure the safety of students when using these critical services have also been taken.
“All seating in the libraries are arranged to comply with current guidance on social distancing and we are limiting the number of students who can be in the libraries to again conform with current guidance,” Demel said. “Staff have protective equipment and campus services are cleaning and sanitizing the computer areas each day.”
KSU encourages anyone on campus to limit any in-person meetings, keep at least six feet between one another and to avoid any form of physical contact to avoid the spread of the virus, according to its social distancing guidelines on its coronavirus page.
KSU also advises any students, faculty and staff to take preventative care according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations.
For faculty that are eligible, KSU has implemented Non-Closure Emergency Leave with Pay. This new policy will allow employees who have not worked up to a certain amount of hours be given pay if there is no work for them to perform due to some facilities shutting down.
Demel said that library workers and any other workers still on campus are able to take any of the leave options available if they cannot telework due to personal circumstances or job responsibilities.
“According to KSU’s Human Resources [Department], library workers, along with anyone else on campus teleworking, are receiving their normal pay,” Demel said. “If there is someone who was unable to telework, whether due to their job responsibilities or personal situation, they would be able to take one of the leave options available, based on their individual circumstances.”
Regular full-time and part-time employees who cannot perform their jobs through telecommunications are eligible for the new policy, according to a KSU document. Temporary employees, student employees and rehired retirees can only telework or use flexible scheduling instead of using Non-Closure Emergency Leave with Pay.
Answers to any further questions regarding the state of the university can be found at KSU’s website on the coronavirus.
