Coronavirus Information

The College of Southern Idaho was notified today by the South Central Public Health District (SCPHD) that a student who attended classes in the Evergreen building on the main CSI campus in Twin Falls has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19). This individual has not been on campus since March 17, 2020, and SCPHD expects all people who are going to get sick due to contact with this individual should already be showing symptoms. SCPHD will contact you with further instruction if you were named as a close contact by this individual (or anyone who has tested positive and is being investigated).

Please continue to follow Governor Little’s Stay Home Order, plus CDC and SCPHD guidelines. If you or a family member currently have a cough, fever, shortness of breath, or other cold/flu-like symptoms please stay home. Please call your provider if you cannot manage your symptoms at home or if you are considered high-risk because of your age or underlying medical conditions. Testing can also be arranged through your provider’s office. Those with symptoms should alert close contacts (e.g., family members) of potential exposure to the virus.

Although transmission from asymptomatic people has been documented, people are most infectious when they are sick. If you do not have symptoms, there is little risk of making others sick. People who are sick should stay isolated for at least seven days from symptom onset AND three days with no symptoms (the three days can be within the seven days). Close contacts of sick people should remain isolated for 14 days from their last day of exposure. 

For general coronavirus questions, please call the SCPHD hotline at (208) 737-1138. SCPHD reminds everyone to follow the recommended guidelines to help stop the spread of coronavirus. These include keeping six feet between yourself and others, stay home as much as possible, avoid all social gatherings, avoid non-essential travel, and cancel visits to nursing homes, hospitals, or locations where high-risk individuals might live. Please visit www.phd5.idaho.gov for more information.

Yesterday, Governor Brad Little issued a Statewide Stay-Home Order directing all residents of Idaho to immediately self-isolate and stay and work from home as much as possible, unless you work in healthcare, public safety, or an identified “essential business”. With this order, you should stay at home unless you need to obtain or provide essential services such as buying groceries and receiving medical care. If you’d like to leave your home to exercise, make sure to practice social distancing by remaining at least 6 feet away from others. People 65 years of age and older or those who are health-compromised should not leave home, if possible.

Higher Education is listed on Governor Little’s order as an essential service. What does that mean? Beginning Monday, March 30, 2020, with few exceptions, all CSI classes will be offered online. Are you ready? If not, we are here to help you. Your first move should be contacting your instructors to make sure you are aware of the plans for the classes you are taking. Remember that we are on Spring Break and instructors may not respond until Monday, March 30. If you can’t get ahold of your instructor, email info@csi.edu and we will make sure you get taken care of. Services to students will still be available during this time, you’ll just have to email or call us instead of coming to campus. Not sure who to contact? Try finding what you need on our Remote Student Services Contact List.

Ok, so that addresses students, but what about employees? Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about you. Employees are still expected to work remotely if they can. If you can’t, please make sure you are in constant contact with your supervisor.

Listed below are a few other things you should note during this time:

Gilbert’s Food Pantry

CSI Student Services has opened Gilbert’s Food Pantry to assist CSI students who are food deficient. If you are a current CSI student who could use some help, please know that your request will be handled privately and confidentially. You will need to fill out the Gilberts Pantry Request Form. If you are unable to do so you may email your request to rlopez@csi.edu. The pantry will remain open from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, until further notice, to provide free emergency food assistance to CSI students.

Computer Use for Students

If you don’t have a computer, you might be able to check one out by calling IT Support at 208-732-6311 or emailing helpdesk@csi.edu! Supplies are limited, so contact them as soon as possible. If you aren’t able to check out a computer, don’t worry, there are other computers available on the main floor of the Student Union Building (Taylor). Please use the North entrance of the Taylor Building to access these computers. They will be available from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, until further notice. Students in the Eagle Residence Hall will have access to the Residence Hall computers. On a side note, if you have a computer and just need WIFI, you might be able to get a signal by parking in one of the main campus parking lots in Twin Falls.

Live Q&A with CSI Certified Peer Educators

Do you have questions that haven’t been answered yet? CSI Certified Peer Educators will be doing a live CSI Coronavirus Q&A session from 12-1  p.m. on Tuesday, March 31, 2020. Jump on and ask your questions.

Finally, thank you for being kind, flexible, and compassionate as we work with a rapidly changing environment. Our CSI Coronavirus website will continuously be updated with helpful information as we learn of new situations that might affect you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need help, we are here to support you!

St. Luke’s Magic Valley screening process for coronavirus (COVID-19) and quick care/same-day appointment needs

Tomorrow (Thursday, March 26), St. Luke’s Magic Valley will open drive-up tents for screening and specimen collection for testing for coronavirus (COVID-19). Patients exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms will be able to stay in their cars for screening, registration and, if needed, sample collection for testing for suspected COVID-19.

The screening station will be available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, until further notice. The screening station is in a tent outside St. Luke’s Surgery Center at the St. Luke’s Magic Valley campus at 575 Pole Line Road W. in Twin Falls. Vehicles should enter via Parkview Dr.

Patients who need immediate medical care for their symptoms will be directed appropriately to an appropriate level of care.

There is no cost for the screening or collection of samples for COVID-19 testing.

For those who feel they need to see a provider for respiratory infection or acute illness, please call your primary care provider. St. Luke’s Quick Care providers are also seeing patients and providing in-car visits. These are for patients who need to see a provider and normal provider visit charges will be applied. St. Luke’s Quick Care is located at 775 Pole Line Road W., Suite 103 in Twin Falls and open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Orthopedic injuries: St. Luke’s Clinic Orthopedics, Spine & Plastic Surgery will be providing temporary expanded orthopedic urgent care services, providing same-day availability for urgent orthopedic injuries from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, starting Monday, March 30. The clinic is located at 738 North College Rd., Suite A in Twin Falls. Please call ahead to 208-814-7000.

Patients in Jerome should proceed to the Magic Valley location for drive-up tent screening and specimen collection for testing or call the hotline at 208-381-9500.

Patients who need assistance after hours, should call the St. Luke’s hotline at 208-381-9500.

Click here for a map. 

It is with deep sadness, that the College of Southern Idaho announces the cancelation of the May 2020, Commencement Ceremonies. On March 16, 2020, the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare, based on guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), released Guidance for Mass Gatherings and Public Events in Idaho, which recommends the cancelation of gatherings which will consist of 50 or more people, may expose high-risk populations, or will draw audiences from communities with confirmed community spread of COVID-19. These guidelines are recommended for the next 8 weeks.  The CSI commencement ceremonies meet all of the above-listed CDC criteria and is within the 8 week window.

We understand how disappointing this decision is for our students, faculty, staff, and families who have worked tirelessly to reach this achievement. This decision was not made lightly, but ultimately the health and safety of our campus community and their families must be paramount. Please rest assured, while the ceremony may not happen, earned degrees and certificates will still be awarded once the semester has concluded. Student transcripts will reflect earned degrees and certificates as soon as they are conferred. Diplomas will be mailed to students approximately six to eight weeks after the end of the term. The CSI Office of the Registrar will also send each graduate a diploma cover and tassel in celebration of their accomplishments. Finally, December 2019, and May 2020, graduates will be invited to participate in a future ceremony.

All questions and concerns about graduation and commencement should be referred to the CSI Registrar, Dr. Michele McFarlane, at mmcfarlane@csi.edu or 208.732.6304.

St. Luke’s Wood River’s temporary same-day appointment and screening process for COVID-19

Today, St. Luke’s Wood River opened a COVID-19 screening and testing station. Patients will be able to stay in their cars for screening, registration and, if needed, testing for suspected coronavirus (COVID-19).

The screening station will be available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, until further notice. The screening station is in a tent outside the physician office annex at St. Luke’s Wood River Medical Center at 100 Hospital Drive in Ketchum. Vehicles should enter via the traffic light at 100 Hospital Drive and Highway 75, and yield to emergency vehicles.

Patients who need immediate medical care for their symptoms will be directed appropriately to the Emergency Department. Individuals meeting testing criteria who do not require hospitalization will be sent home to self-quarantine while awaiting test results. Those who do not meet testing criteria will be sent home with instructions.

Until further notice, St. Luke’s Wood River Family Medicine will only be scheduling same-day appointments for non-respiratory health concerns at the physician office annex, Suite 109 in Ketchum. 

The Hailey clinic will be open only for previously scheduled appointments. To schedule an appointment, contact 208-788-3434, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

 If you do not have a primary care provider, please contact:

• Luke’s Wood River Family Medicine in Hailey, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 208-788-3434.
• Center for Community Health (for non-medical evaluations and questions, such as assistance finding a primary care provider and accessing other local resources), Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 208-727-8733.
• If you need assistance after hours, please call 208-381-9000.
• For general questions, call the Idaho CareLine state hotline at 2-1-1 or 1-800-926-2588.

The CSI Bookstore will continue to assist students in any way possible. In response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) with the College moving all courses to online instruction, and students returning home, we are working with our rental partner to allow flexibility of the rental return timeline. Along with this flexibility the CSI Bookstore is providing prepaid return labels to any student that is not able to return their rentals to the Campus Bookstore. Each student will need to request a prepaid label by emailing CSIBookstore@csi.edu by the end of the semester (May 8, 2020) along with the following information:

Student ID

First & Last Name

Address

City, State, Zip

Phone Number

Email

Upon receipt, the CSI Bookstore will email return labels within 2 business days to the email provided. Place your rental books in a box and place the return label on the box. You need to mail your books in returnable condition to the CSI Bookstore by the end of the following week May 15, 2020. Your shipment can be taken to any FedEx drop off location where you will not be charged. 

At this time, the College of Southern Idaho is dedicated to paying all employees their scheduled pay through April 25. This is an evolving situation that will continue to be evaluated. To help the college with documentation for possible federal refunds, please fill out a leave slip if you are going home and unable to work, put “CORONA” in the notes section. You will not lose those hours. The slips will be used for documentation only. If you are working your normal hours from home, there is no need to fill out a leave slip. 

Individuals being paid overload will receive the pay they are contracted to receive for this semester. 

Work Studies can be paid if the College closes and displaces student workers. 

Supervisors should continue to submit timesheets with normal scheduled hours through April 14, even if employees are unable to work during this time. If employees are unable to work, put “CORONA” in the description section of the timesheet. 

Please continue to work with your supervisors to establish a plan that works best for you. If you can work, please continue to do so either in office or remotely. For more information, please contact CSI Human Resources at hr@csi.edu. And again, we encourage all members of our College community to exercise compassion during this challenging time. 

In light of the recent regional area school closures and the consequences related to child and family care, the College of Southern Idaho encourages employees to communicate with their supervisors and students to communicate with their instructors as soon as possible if it becomes necessary that they must work or attend class from home. CSI will remain open at this time, but circumstances are evolving.  Please continue to monitor your email and www.csi.edu/coronavirus. We encourage all members of our College community to exercise compassion during this challenging time. 

As you have all probably heard, Idaho has its second case of coronavirus confirmed in Blaine County. Not long after this case was confirmed, the Blaine County School District made the decision to close all school district buildings and cancel all classes until April 5. This impacts CSI for several reasons, but most significantly because the CSI Blaine County Center shares a building with the Blaine County School District. We know that this is concerning, and we are working to keep people as informed as possible.

As of today, Saturday, March 14, the CSI Blaine County Center will be closed until further notice to be in line with the Blaine County School District decision. This means that the building is locked and not accessible. Thus, there is no proctored testing available. All classes are in the process of being moved online already, so there will be no impact to the instructional plan. If students have any questions, they should start with their instructors who will help them navigate the resources that they will need during this closure. The Blaine County Center office staff are currently preparing to offer as many services as possible remotely. For questions, please contact Hallie Star hstar@csi.edu or Sarah Caballero at scaballero@csi.edu.  Phones will be forwarded as well, so you can continue to call (208) 788-2033 for help.

Please do your best to keep yourself, your loved ones, and your community well. More information will be sent out as soon as it becomes available.