The Fordham University Rose Hill United Student Government (USG) held their weekly meeting on Thursday, Sept. 30, to discuss the university attendance policy in regards to the continued COVID-19 pandemic.

Due to classes being back in person and with COVID-19 still affecting students, there is confusion among students when they are excused from classes or not, said USG.

If a student is contact traced and vaccinated, they are still supposed to attend class. If students are non-vaccinated and contact traced, they must complete a two-week quarantine. 

However, it is also up to the discretion of individual professors to set contact tracing guidelines in their own classes. 

If a student has tested positive for COVID-19, they will be excused from all classes, according to USG. Protocol for students who are not feeling well is the same as normal years. A doctor’s note is required to complete the excused absence. 

Academic clubs are only allowed to travel in the Tri-State area by bus this year, according to USG. No airfare is permitted due to Fordham’s COVID-19 guidelines. Athletic clubs will still be allowed to travel via plane and out of the Tri-State area. 

The USG Diversity Action Coalition (DAC) is moving forward with their land acknowledgement and Indigenous People’s Day proposal. 

The proposal includes an official change from Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day. Fordham University is one of two universities who still uses the term “Columbus Day,” senator Teresa Jacobs, FCRH ‘23, told USG. 

The proposal also includes a formal plaque with a land acknowledgement to the tribes Fordham University is built on. The Senate has passed this proposal, and DAC will send out to clubs to endorse the proposal. 

The Commuter Students Association (CSA) will be having its largest fundraising event, Thanks-Give-Away, on November 18.