Colgate Together Digest

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Hello, Colgate Community Member.

Congratulations to all of our student-athletes for putting on such a strong showing during Homecoming 2021. The event name had a whole new meaning this year as we added another new-normal item to our list of reasons to be thankful. We now look forward to fall break and family weekend next month.

Speaking of giving thanks and looking forward, we have just two students in isolation right now — they will be out on Oct. 1. We are counting down the days with both of them.

This newspaper clipping, published during the 1918 pandemic, came across one of my social feeds a little while back, and it seems like a good moment to forward it in case you haven’t seen it.

“Do not neglect your mask,” makes me laugh, but it’s a good point if you overlook the phrasing.

“Live in an abundance of fresh air” followed by “Keep warm” suggests that the author didn’t live in central New York. 

Everyone’s a critic. But this paper from a century ago still offers some wisdom. Phrasing aside, it reminds us that we belong to a community; that we have community responsibilities that sometimes supersede our individual wishes; and that dedicated, knowledgeable people are working constantly to give us the best science and keep us as safe as possible.

We saw the benefits of following the science and the Commitment to Community Health this weekend, when we were able to gather for homecoming. Thanks for making it happen.

Talk to you on Thursday.

Laura H. Jack
Vice President for Communications
Acting Chief Diversity Officer

Take Note

The New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control will be conducting annual fire/life safety inspections at all university-owned properties, Oct. 6–30. In preparation, the fire safety department asks all students to review their spaces for code compliance. Common violations have included covered smoke detectors, evidence of smoking indoors, use of candles, obstructed sprinkler heads, items on sprinkler pipes, use of extension cords without circuit breaker/overload protection, propped fire doors, blocked exits, and improper storage of flammables (e.g. propane tanks). Contact Fire Safety Manager Gary Bridge at x6531 with questions. Thank you.

Megabus offers trips from campus to Port Authority in New York City for academic breaks. Buses leave for New York City from Colgate on Friday, Oct. 8, at 2:20 p.m., and they will leave for Colgate from New York City on Tuesday, Oct. 12, at 2:00 p.m. 

Colgate has partnered with My Bus Home to offer transportation to White Plains, N.Y., and Newton, Mass., for all 2021–22 academic breaks. For fall break, buses will depart at 4 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 8, 2021. Return trips depart Tuesday, Oct. 12 — time to be indicated on itinerary/payment letter, but the bus typically arrives on campus by dinnertime. Reservation deadline is Sept. 29. Students will be notified before the trip deadline if there are not enough riders for the trip to take place. Sign up at mybushome.com to receive more information and make a reservation(s). More information on transportation can be found on the maps and travel webpage.

Colgate University is required to file annual reports of our employee benefit plans with the Internal Revenue Service under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). ERISA further requires the University to provide summaries of the annual reports for each respective plan to all participants. Below are links to the Summary Annual Reports for the plan year 2020, providing information concerning the financial aspects of the Colgate-sponsored benefit plans in which most employees participate. For more information regarding the benefits provided by Colgate, please visit the Online Benefit System in the portal or contact the Human Resources Department. 

Colgate University Health and Welfare Plan
Colgate University Section 125 Flexible Benefits Plan
Colgate University Defined Contribution Retirement Plan 

Worried-well testing is available to students by appointment only — Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Please sign up here.

Upcoming Events

Post-Colonial Identities of a Caribbean Woman
Oct. 4
5:30 p.m.
Join us for an engaging evening with award-winning French Caribbean filmmaker Mariette Monpierre as she discusses post-colonial issues of identity, migration, colorism, and hair politics through scenes from her films and documentaries. This event is sponsored by the Colgate Arts Council.


Your Zip Code Shouldn’t Determine Your Health: Social Determinants of Health and Achieving Health Equity with Jerome Adams, 20th U.S. surgeon general
Oct. 6
7:30 p.m.
Adams merges his expertise at the forefront of national and global health policy with his own personal experiences: growing up with life-threatening asthma, as a brother to someone with substance-use disorder, and as someone navigating politics to tirelessly champion the health of the vulnerable and voiceless during times of crisis. Sponsored by the Global Public and Environmental Health Program.

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