COVID19 UPDATE #15

DATE: May 14, 2020 at 8:30 am
TO: Faculty and Staff

FROM: Dr. Richard Nelson, President
COVID19 UPDATE #15

Colleagues,

As you may have heard, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down the Governor’s Safer at Home order yesterday. The ruling itself was not a surprise to many observers, but the Court’s simultaneous refusal to delay the effective date for six days as sought by the plaintiffs was unexpected. The six-day window was intended to give the Legislature and the Governor’s Office time to work out a replacement plan, and we remain hopeful that the branches of government will come together and provide the people of Wisconsin with responsible official guidance on how we can return to work as safely as possible.  We’ll watch closely as this unfortunate political situation evolves.

In the meantime, please know that the Court’s ruling is informed by the laws of the State. It is a legal opinion only, and is not based on good science, epidemiological research, or infectious disease expertise. Most importantly, it does not say that the danger posed by the virus has passed and that it’s now safe to return to pre-COVID routines and activities.

What does the decision mean for Nicolet College? For the near term, the short answer is that it means very little. We hope our elected officials and the WI DHS will quickly develop new and well-reasoned guidelines for the people and businesses of Wisconsin. However, in the absence of such guidelines, we will rely on information from the CDC and other authoritative and responsible sources as we continue our safety first approach to drafting a re-opening plan for our College.

As always, we welcome your questions.

Richard