As the majority of the campus community has completed or is scheduled to complete first-round saliva testing for COVID-19, University of Nebraska–Lincoln leaders are starting to prepare for the second half of the spring semester re-entry testing protocol.
To help identify positive cases — in particular those who are asymptomatic — within the university community, all students, instructors and staff who plan to study/work on campus during the spring semester must complete two rounds of saliva-based COVID-19 testing between Jan. 19 and Feb. 7. The university is asking that the second test be completed within 10 days of the first. The testing is linked to the Safer Community smartphone app, which includes a “status card” that will be used to access campus facilities. Only negative results from the on-campus saliva testing program are accepted. Access options are also available here for individuals who do not have a smartphone. Complete details on the testing program, Safer Community app and other elements of spring protocols are available here.
Access to second-round testing is scheduled to begin Jan. 28 for the majority of campus and continue through Feb. 7. Details on when individuals who completed the initial test (with a negative result) should schedule the second are available in the Safer Community app under the “Next Step” header or (for those without a smartphone) is accessible via an online portal. The portal is available here.
To maintain access to campus buildings, users should schedule the a second saliva for 24 to 36 hours before the 10th day after the first test. For example, if the first test was Jan. 19, the second test should be completed by Jan. 28 so the result posts to the app the next day.
Between the first day of classes on Jan. 25 and start of second-round testing on Jan. 28, hours and access to saliva collection sites on campus will shift slightly. Complete details on availability are listed in the Safer Community app and on the university’s Spring 2021 Testing Sites webpage. All collection sites on City, East and Nebraska Innovation campuses will be in operation when the second-round testing begins on Jan. 28. The temporary site offered at the University of Nebraska at Omaha for the first round of re-entry testing will not be in service.
Appointments for testing can be made via the Safer Community app or (for those who do not have a smartphone) online. The app allows for appointments to be made up to six days in advance. Individuals who need to schedule additional testing beyond those six days will need to check back as the 10-day window nears completion.
Anyone who tests positive through the saliva-based testing will receive an exemption for the 90 day period that follows a 10 day isolation period. Those who test positive through other COVID-19 testing should request a saliva testing exemption.
