COVID-19 Special Request for Additional Work Modifications

As part of the institutional response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Texas State University is committed to supporting our students and employees who are at a higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. The University has implemented significant proactive measures to help safeguard the health and safety of our students and employees including consideration of additional work modifications on a case-by-case basis. 

Measures implemented to safeguard our community beginning summer II, 2020, include but are not limited to:

• requiring protective face coverings, 
• decreasing the density of classrooms, shared offices, and co-curricular events, 
• enhanced cleaning and disinfecting protocols, and
• communicating the university’s expectations for personal and public health measures. 

The academic and workplace modifications implemented for summer II 2020 and fall 2020 are based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) list of medical conditions that may place individuals at a higher risk for serious illness and/or complications from COVID-19 which are:

1. People 65 years and older
2. People of all ages with ongoing underlying medical conditions, particularly if not well controlled:

• Chronic lung disease such as emphysema, chronic bronchitis, or idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
• Moderate to severe asthma
• Serious heart conditions such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, or congenital heart disease
• Immunocompromised conditions such as cancer treatment, bone marrow or organ transplantation, immune deficiencies, poorly controlled HIV or AIDS, and prolonged use of corticosteroids and immune weakening medications
• Severe obesity (Body mass index of 40 kg/m2 or higher)
• Diabetes, type 1 or 2 or gestational
• Chronic kidney disease requiring dialysis
• Liver disease such as cirrhosis or chronic hepatitis
• Hemoglobin disorders such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia

In accordance with CDC guidance, additional modifications to help safeguard the health and safety of students and employees in these higher risk groups may be provided on a case-by-case basis if they do not pose significant difficulty or expense, do not alter the academic expectations of a course or program, and allow employees to still accomplish the necessary functions of their position. 

Request Process and Timeline

If you are in a higher risk group and want to request a modification related to COVID-19, please follow the links below and complete the Special Request Form. Individuals who are 65 years of age or older do not have to provide additional medical documentation. Individuals who have an ongoing underlying medical condition will need to provide evidence of their condition. Should you have any inquiries related to  workplace modifications, please contact the ADA Compliance Coordinator at ADACoordinator@txstate.edu.

To ensure a timely review of all requests, please submit the form by June 29, 2020, for modifications for the remainder of the summer and by August 1, 2020, for the fall 2020 semester.   

Note: Student employees should submit the employee workplace request for all employment related modifications.

For more information on the measures the university has implemented to safeguard faculty, staff and students, visit Health and Safety Guidelines Effective June 8.