CSUSM Corporation COVID-19 Information

As more information becomes available, we will continue to update this page. 

Additional Staff Resources and FAQs 

CSUSM Incident Response Status 

The CSUSM Incident Response website also offers resources, helpful links, Campus Communications and information from the Chancellors Office. 

Frequently Asked Questions

CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) CAMPUS INFORMATION

• Where can I get more information about the CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19)?
  CSUSM Corporation employees are encouraged to visit the CSUSM Coronavirus Information Website which has helpful information, resources, and links.  We can all do our part to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus by following the CDC recommendations.

HUMAN RESOURCES AND PAYROLL

• Return to Campus

  The Human Resources and Payroll department staff will be back in the office on August 2, 2021.

  • Vaccine Verification Program (VPP) - Fully vaccinated employees may participate in the voluntary VVP, however even those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 must wear masks indoors per CDC Guidelines. To participate, employees need to submit a self-attestation form confirming their vaccination status.
  • Most campus spaces have returned to pre-pandemic summer building schedules (with a few exceptions, including the USU and Kellogg Library). Campus Access Requests and Research Reactivation Requests are no longer required.
• Working from Home and Returning to Working in the Office: Simple Ergonomic Tips to Set Up Your Workstation
  • Ergo Webinar
  • Simple Ergonomic Strategies for Working From Home
  • Working From Home: Ergonomic Considerations Refresher and Tips
• Will I still be responsible to pay for my staff long-term parking permit either by directly paying Parking Services or through payroll deduction?

  Parking permits are required when parking on campus. If you are not parking on campus this fall, you do not need to take any action. General Daily (Visitor) permits will continue to be available for purchase online for occasional visits, but keep in mind that it may be more cost effective to purchase a 1-month permit. CSUSM will continue to offer a no-cost parking option through August 23, 2021. Lots X, Y, and Z will be available for free daily parking from 5 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. Please note that there will be no overnight parking; lots X, Y, and Z will be closed from midnight to 4:59 a.m. daily.

  If you previously had a parking pass in place all you need to do in order to reactivate your parking pass, is to click on this link: CSUSM Corporation Parking Permit Activation. Only Regular Corporation employees can pay via payroll deduction. All others must pay Parking & Commuter Services directly.

  If you did not have a Parking Permit in place prior to everyone working remotely, and you wish to obtain a Parking Permit, please email the shared HR Payroll email box (hrcorp@csusm.edu).

• Will Cashiers be open to pick up my paycheck?

  Cougar Central will not be open for CSUSM Corporation paycheck distribution. Instead, all CSUSM Corporation paychecks will be mailed to employees’ home addresses listed in the ADP system.

  This paycheck distribution procedure will begin with the March 23^rd pay day and will continue until further notice.

  We encourage all employees to sign up for direct deposit if you have not done so already. Log in to ADP Workforce Now and follow these steps to set up direct deposit:

  1. Access ADP using above hyper link

  GO TO:

  1. Myself
  2. Pay
  3. Payment Options
  4. Click on Add Bank Account
  5. Add your banking and other information
  6. Click ADD

  An email communication will be sent out once the previous procedure is reactivated. Please see the CSUSM Corporation Payroll Schedule for the upcoming CSUSM Corporation pay days.

• Where can I find additional infomation about HR and Payroll?

  CSUSM Corporation HR

• Who should I contact if I have an HR or Payroll question?

  CSUSM Corporation employees may contact CSUSM Corporation Human Resources at 760-750-4707 or email hrcorp@csusm.edu

• How can I find more resources on how to stay healthy, engaged and productive while working remotely during this time?

  More information can be found on the Employment Development Website.

• Are virtual care options available through my health plan?
  •  Kaiser Virtual Care Information
  • Anthem Virtual Care Information

SPONSORED PROJECTS

Visit the Research Reactivation Research Reactive Website for guidance and resources for the CSU San Marcos research community about how to safely reactivate and/or ramp-up onsite activity during COVID-19.

• Where can I find information and guidance from the federal awarding agencies?

  Given that COVID-19 and the associated impacts continue to evolve, Principal Investigators/Project Directors (PI/PDs) are strongly encouraged to monitor announcements from funding agencies and sponsors for changes in policies, practices, procedures, deadlines, operating hours, communication methods, etc.

  Visit the Council On Governmental Relations (COGR) website for FAQs and Institutional and Agency Responses to COVID-19 and Additional Resources webpage for aggregated responses and resources from the federal agencies.  

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   White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

  • March 19, 2020 Memo (M-20-17): Administrative Relief for Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) due to Loss of Operations
    

  • March 9, 2020 Memo (M-20-11): Administrative Relief for Recipients and Applicants of Federal Financial Assistance Directly Impacted by the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)

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  National Institutes of Health (NIH)

  • Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): Information for NIH Applicants and Recipients of NIH Funding

  • NIH FAQs COVID-19 – Summary of guidance to date from NIH

  • NOT-OD-20-086 Flexibilities Available to Applicants and Recipients of Federal Financial Assistance Affected by COVID-19 – Addresses a short-term administrative flexibilities, without compromising accountability requirements, on a range of topics related to pre-award costs; extension of post-award financial and other reporting; prior approval requirement waivers; and salaries/stipends, etc.

  These flexibilities are applicable to NIH applicants and recipients where the entity is conducting research activities related to or affected by COVID-19. Affected entities are those that have been closed, or business activities have been hindered due to COVID-19 precautionary measures and/or illnesses. Entities that are affected will be asked to provide documentation to NIH describing the effects, and how long their facility and NIH related research, clinical practices, or instruction was and/or will be affected.

  • NOT-OD-20-083 General Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) - Proposal Submission and Award management Related to COVID-19 – Addresses general questions associated with proposal submission and award management; guidance on travel, cancelled conferences, etc.

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  National Science Foundation (NSF)

  • FAQs on COVID-19 for NSF Proposers and Awardees - Travel questions, extensions, REU site info

  • Dear Colleague Letter for Proposers and Awardees

  • Information from NSF on the Coronavirus (comprehensive NSF site)

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  • Nasa Coronavirus information 
  • Department of Education Coronavirus Information
• Should I develop a contingency plan for my research study?

  OSP encourages all investigators to develop a contingency plan and communicate it to your research teams. The plan should touch on the following, as applicable:

  • Continuing or halting data collection

  • Regularly communicating with the research team, study sites, and participants to ensure everyone is operating under the procedures

  • Identifying research priorities in the event CSUSM employees are not able to come to work

  • Managing research data in the event CSUSM closes

  • Arranging for the possibility of remote access to research files

  • Evaluate project tasks and resources needed to determine what can and cannot be performed at home during self-isolation

  • Can personnel salaries continue to be charged to the sponsored project? Personnel salaries may continue to be charged for employees that are still able to perform work on projects.

• Where do I go for support services for my sponsored project?

   PIs can work with school deans for immediate support services needed on your sponsored project.                

• Is the Office of Sponsored Projects Office (OSP) operating as usual?

  Update: OSP staff will be back in the office on August 2, 2021.

  To support social isolation efforts, OSP staff began working remote on March 17, 2020. Though we cannot meet with Principal Investigators (PI) in person, the work we began two (2) years to modernize our infrastructure and implement best practices us to remain operational off campus. Phone and web conferencing (Zoom and Teams) is fully functional and staff will respond to emails and calls made to our office lines.

  OSP will no longer be accepting hardcopy documents (i.e. Direct Pays, Petty Cash, etc) for review and approval. If you need an approval signature from OSP, please email documents to your SPA or sponsoredprojects@csusm.edu.

• I have questions about other project costs that are not addressed here. Who can help me?

  Contact OGSR or your Sponsored Projects Analyst with questions.

• What if I need to make a change to my funded research project?
  • Federal awards: OSP is required to request prior approval from federal award agencies whenever there is a change in the scope of work or key personnel. We must also request prior approval whenever the Principal Investigator/Project Director will be disengaged from the project for more than three months and/or experience a 25 percent reduction in time devoted to the project (2 CFR 200.308(c)). Some grants may be subject to more stringent prior approval requirements

  Please consult your specific award terms and conditions to determine when prior approvals are required. Even if your sponsor is sympathetic with the delay, it is generally necessary to modify any contracts to reflect revised deliverable schedules.

  • Subawards and subcontracts: Monitor all subrecipients to ensure they making adequate progress. If a subrecipient is unable to perform and/or meet deadlines, it may impact your performance as well. Please communicate with your sponsor and alert OSP regarding any such challenges.
• Can salary still be charged to my project during periods when no work is performed?

  Various funding sources are used to support those carrying out research. If sponsored by an external entity, that sponsor will have specific policies on continuing to charge salary when unable to work. Written sponsor permission to do so will be required.

  For NIH funded projects, if a recipient organization’s policy allows for the charging of salaries and benefits during periods when no work is performed due to the effect of COVID-19, regardless of the funding source, including Federal and non-Federal, then such charges to NIH grant awards will be allowable. (NOT-OD-20-086)

  Reminder: NIH awarding Institutes/Centers (ICs) may request documentation to confirm the requirements of institutional policies.

• For staff working remotely, can the effort still be charged to a sponsored project?

  If the individual is working remotely and contributing to the project, then salary can be charged to the grant.

  If an individual cannot contribute to their current project but can contribute to another sponsored project or school activity, the salary must be moved to that funding source.

  The PI/lab should document and retain information on the staff and related compensation that is charged to each award when no contribution is made to the project.

• Can I charge my project for costs related to remote work?

  These type of expenses are generally considered facilities and administrative (F&A) costs and are not allowable as a direct cost to sponsored projects unless specifically approved by the sponsor. Refer to sponsor policy, guidance, and updates.

  Examples may be: laptop, printer, office supplies

• Do I need to notify my collaborator (subaward) of any COVID-19 related delays/changes?

  The answer depends on your subaward terms and the underlying regulations (e.g., federal regulations) that may apply to your project. Please confer with your SPA for guidance and questions regarding notification content and process.

• Are my subawardees subject to travel restrictions?

  If it's an official subaward, the subrecipient's travel policy takes precedence, unless the sponsor has travel restrictions we're obligated to flow down.

  If the traveler is coming to CSUSM, please attempt to postpone the trip.

• Are travel cancellation costs due to COVID-19 allowable on sponsored projects?

  Every effort should be made to obtain a full or partial refund from the vendor (airline, hotel, conference organizer, car rental, etc.) and any refunds should be credited to the same project that the purchase was made. If costs cannot be refunded, they may remain charged to the project if allowable by the sponsor.  If the sponsor disallows these costs, CSUSM Corporation, in consultation with the Dean of Graduate Studies and Research, will work with PIs to determine how to cover the costs.

• What about travel costs to conferences or for research not charged to a sponsored project?

  Travel expenses that have been incurred using a stateside chartfield string can be reimbursed and should include the COVID19 Cancellation Memo and include the class code in the chartfield string as advised by Partners in Campus Business Operations (class code 25601 – Emergency Ops Ctr Coronavirus).  See the CSUSM Corporation FAQs for travel expenses incurred on a CSUSM Corp project.

LABORATORY RESEARCH

• If I am actively conducting research on campus, what should I do now?

  Currently, CSUSM campus- and field-based research efforts may proceed at pre-Covid levels as long as researchers and participants adhere to current campus policies related to Covid-19 (including vaccination, testing and masking requirements). More specifically:

  • Restrictions on research associated with a Reactivating Research Health and Safety Protocol (RRHSP) have been lifted.
  • Additional researchers involved in campus- or field-based research may now be managed through pre-COVID protocols.

  It is also essential that all researchers continue to enforce current campus policies related to Covid-19 and understand that our Covid-19 conditions may evolve further. As of July 30^th, CSUSM strongly encourages universal masking indoors, especially when interacting with students.

  For more information, Research Reactivation Covid-19 Guidance.

PURCHASES AND PROCUREMENT

• COVID-related purchases

  Procard Purchases – COVID-related activity – as we prepare monthly procard reconciliations, please remember to code all COVID-related items to the Class Code: 25601 – Emergency Ops Ctr Coronavirus.  

  • Please forward receipts, AVP/Dean preapproval, & other supporting documentation to…

  • Jon Epes (jepes@csusm.edu) for all Foundation & Campus purchases
  • Janine Prior (jprior@csusm.edu) for CSUSM Corporation purchases
  • If you only have hardcopy & have no scanning capability, please at least forward the electronic support you do have.
  • Please reference “COVID Procard” in the subject line of the email.  Please also reference in the email the procard user & chart-field being used (dept, fund, account)
• Essential Purchases

  Essential purchases only –  to help us maintain warehouse capacity and to support our reduced on-site logistics staff, please refrain from any purchases that are not directly required for our continued operations during this alternative mode of work.

  Purchase Request for Approval (RFA) Update 

  The Purchase Request for Approval (RFA) has moved to Adobe Sign!  The process is still the same, but the mechanism for completing an RFA has changed.  Adobe Sign RFA is available now and we will accept either version between today and May 1, 2020. Does not apply to purchases on 85xxx projects.

  Friendly reminders:

  • All purchases over $10,000 must be approved by the Division Vice President.
  • All purchases over $50,000 must be approved by the CFO, Neal Hoss (nhoss@csusm.edu).
  • All FAS purchases over $50,000 must be approved by Sarah Villarreal (svillarr@csusm.edu).

  The form can be found at CSUSM's Procurement & Contracts’ website.

  Got questions? Please email jtemnick@csusm.edu 

• Deliveries and Mailings

  Deliveries & mailings during telecommuting period –  in continued support of the social distancing effort, we are temporarily permitting essential purchases to be delivered directly to the recipient’s remote work location.

  • Mailing-out essential work items directly from employee remote work location will also be permitted.  Postage may be purchased with procard or reimbursed through direct pay.
  • If you expect to have a high-volume of out-going essential work mail, please contact Barbara Sainz (bsainz@csusm.edu) about temporarily setting up a Click-N-Ship account for your business function.

STUDENT HOUSING

• Will Student Housing still be open?
  CSUSM Corporation remains committed to support students who will continue living in student housing. Both housing communities are open and fully staffed for those choosing to live on campus. For more information about student housing during this time, please visit our Housing FAQs.

TRAVEL

• Am I allowed to Travel?

  Following guidance from the CSU Chancellor's Office, the CSU travel suspension is lifted on June 1, 2021 with the following safety guidance in place. 

  Travelers will certify the following when submitting a Travel request:

  1. I will follow the current CDC Travel Guidelines and all travel procedures specified by my campus. 
  2. I have reviewed the location or travel destination and the U.S. State Department's Travel Advisory as a part of my analysis to perform this travel event. 
• What should I do about canceling travel reservations?
  Refer to the CDC Travel Guidelines and U.S. State Department's Travel Advisory relating to the travel destination in question. If travel is restricted to that destination in a way that is applicable to those traveling, travelers should make every effort to cancel any travel reservations and must return any refundable deposits. 
• Have you cancelled travel due to the COVID-19 advisories and incurred cancellation related expenses?
   Please include a completed and signed COVID-19 Cancellation memo with your completed travel packet and submit to the Travel Office.
• Where can I get more information about Travel?
  • CSUSM Corporation Travel Page
  • CSUSM's Incident Response Information 
• Other Resources
  •  CDC Travel Advisories
  • Dept of State Travel Advisories
  • Dept of State Travel Advisory Map
  • Travelers from Countries with Widespread Transmission Arriving in US

FISCAL AUTHORITY APPROVALS

• How should I obtain Fiscal Authority Approvals?

  If you are a University employee transitioning to remote work, it has been determined that fiscal authority approvals may be made via email confirmation for various payment requests, e.g. direct pays, travel claims, etc. If there is a need to have more than one signature approval, please route the email appropriately so that all approvals are contained within the email.

BOOKSTORE INFORMATION

• Are resources available for students through the bookstore?
   CSUSM Bookstore

Updated 08/04/2021 @ 12:47pm