Dear SPS Staff,

With our return to the office coming shortly, it is important to be prepared for the changes to our work environment. Several workspaces at Wieboldt Hall, Abbott Hall, and the Mansion have been repurposed as shared neighborhood spaces that will be available on a reserved basis to individuals or groups that need temporary space. We will be using the DeskFlex app to allow staff to reserve spaces in SPS facilities.

The app can be accessed via the web, or in a mobile version available for Android and Apple iOS. Users will authenticate to the system using their Net ID and password, described in the PDFs we are attaching to this email. Users will then specify their desired date, time, and space they wish to reserve.

A word of caution: we have tested the web and mobile applications, but we are still working out technical issues with the vendor. We ask for your patience while we improve the user experience. If you have any questions, please email us at sps-it@northwestern.edu or use our Help Desk http://help.sps.northwestern.edu.

Thanks,
SPS IT

Compatibility:
iPhone or iPod Touch : Requires iOS 12.0 or later
iPad: Requires iPadOS 12.0 or later
Mac: Requires macOS 11.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip
Android devices: Requires 6.0 or later from the Google Play store
Microsoft laptop or desktop works on the most recent versions of Chrome, Edge, or Safari

Download these pdf files:

How to make a reservation.

Mobile App Quick Start Guide

Updated September 15, 2021

To maintain the vibrancy that characterizes our campuses, the University expects that most employees will continue to work at designated campus locations for a majority of their work week.  In early 2021, the School of Professional Studies submitted a proposal for a hybrid Return to Campus plan, which was subsequently approved.  That plan was shared with all SPS staff members. 

• If employees require additional accommodations, beyond the SPS Return to Campus plan, based upon their own medical, disability or other protected class, they should contact the Office of Equity and follow the Reasonable Accommodation Policy to request an accommodation.

• If employees require additional flexiblity that differs from the established Return to Campus plan, they may submit this request form to your manager, who will review and submit to an internal SPS committee for review and decision. All additional flexiblity requests are being handled at the School level and not the University level.

Full details on the University’s policy on Alternative Work Strategies are available here.  Questions regarding these policies can be addressed to Jeannine Russo at jrusso@northwestern.edu or to HR Business Partners at HRBP@northwestern.edu

How does the rise in the delta variant change our back-to-office plans? How will updates be communicated with the ever-changing situation?

The most up-to-date information can be found on the University COVID-19 webpage and via the University COVID-19 dashboard.

SPS will continue to follow the rules and policies set forth by the University. The University is guided by the guidelines set forth by the CDC, the State of Illinois, the city of Evanston and the city of Chicago. SPS follows the University direction.

There is a team at the University that is constantly monitoring the situation and meets weekly with representatives from around the University. SPS has three representatives that are part of these weekly meetings and we are sharing updates with the school. These will be shared via email and via this website.

What is the protocol that SPS will follow if someone in the office is COVID-19 positive?

The official University protocol is outlined here. Individuals who test positive should self-report. If you test positive at an NU testing site or through Northwestern Medicine, the University will be notified. After reporting, the following will occur:

• A member of Northwestern’s COVID Response Team will reach out to walk you through next steps. This will include direction regarding your need to self-isolate in accordance with Northwestern and CDC requirements as well as guidance regarding your path to return to work.
• In the event that you receive notification of a positive result prior to hearing from the COVID Response Team, immediately begin to self-isolate pending further guidance and email covidcasemanagement@northwestern.edu. In addition to working with our COVID Response Team, please work directly with your primary care clinical team to notify them of your positive test and to seek direction on any follow-up care.

Contact tracing is also handled by the University’s COVID response team. Protocol is outlined at the link above, but includes:

• Contact tracing will be done in close collaboration with local public health officials.  Based on these protocols, confirmed close contacts of individuals that are COVID-19 positive will be included in the University’s COVID Response Team case management process. 
• Unvaccinated individuals identified via contact tracing will be asked to quarantine until the recommended CDC clearance timeframe has been met.
• Fully vaccinated individuals or those who have tested positive for COVID -19 in the past 3 months who are identified via contract tracing will not be required to quarantine. Any individuals who are identified via contact tracing who develop symptoms will be asked to test for COVID-19 at specific intervals to rule out the presence of a COVID-19 infection.  

If you have questions about this process, please reach out to the covidcasemanagement@northwestern.edu, as these are University-wide policies that SPS is following.

Can you know if your workspace partner has been vaccinated? For individuals who are not vaccinated/do not disclose vaccine status, how will the bi-weekly testing process be managed at SPS?

Individual vaccination status is confidential and private and will not be disclosed by the School or University. All information regarding vaccinations is available here.

Testing for unvaccinated staff is conducted by the University. Unvaccinated staff or faculty who work on campus are required to:

• Complete twice-weekly COVID-19 testing on campus (Based on recommendations from Northwestern’s medical experts, these tests must be completed within three days of each other. If the number of days between tests is greater than three, the Symptom Tracker application will display in yellow as a reminder to complete a new test in order to return to green status.)
• Complete the daily Symptom Tracker application on those days when they are on campus
• Wear a mask in all shared indoor settings

These obligations constitute requirements for employment eligibility for unvaccinated staff and professional duties for unvaccinated faculty.  

If you have questions about the vaccination policies, please reach out to vaccine@northwestern.edu.