CHARLOTTE, N.C. — UNC Charlotte officials are cracking down on students and staff members who aren't taking some of the new coronavirus health and safety protocols seriously.
Students and staff are required to complete daily health screenings and now, those who repeatedly do not check-in will temporarily lose access to their school accounts.
Every morning students and staff get an email to fill out their Niner Health Check, it's four questions and helps give the university an idea of the overall health and safety on campus.
“I've built it into my schedule. In the morning when I wake up, it's the first thing I get done,” said Freshman Alonzo Mallette.
Students and staff are required to answer four questions including if they have symptoms or have been exposed to the virus. Based on their answers, they'll be told it's safe to come to campus or to stay home and possibly take further action.
Students must answer the survey every single day. Employees are expected to answer it Monday through Friday and on any weekend day they plan to be on campus. Tele-working and part-time students and employees are still expected to fill it out.
“It just kind of helps us feel safer on campus,” said Connor Flanagan.
Starting this week, those who miss 20 health checks will have their NinerNET accounts suspended. That restricts access to University email accounts, class material and any other digital platform requiring users to log in.
Around 96% of the student body and 99% of faculty and staff completed the health checks before the suspensions began. Approximately 1,400 people were originally suspended. At last check, almost 250 were still locked out, that’s less than 1% of the total population.
Regaining access to NinerNET is as simple as completing a health check.
“It’s not that hard, if you forget it I understand that. It's trying to keep everyone safe so if you're intentionally, repeatedly not doing it, you shouldn't have access to school,” said Mallette.
The University is taking health and safety seriously with the pandemic. For the first time, students and staff are required to get a flu shot by November 16th.
“This might seem like an unusual or extreme measure, but we've never faced anything like COVID-19 before, and we must take extra steps to protect the health of our campus," said Chancellor Sharon Gaber.
Next Thursday there is a flu shot clinic in the student union.