Dartmouth has adopted new COVID-19-related guidelines on the maximum number of people allowed to gather for activities, including dining, and the institution has partnered with a company to produce a virus-prevention course, COVID-19 Task Force co-chairs told faculty, students, and staff in an email today.

In addition, co-chairs Lisa Adams and Joshua Keniston reminded the community that travel restrictions remain in place, including a required 14-day quarantine for those who travel outside of New England. Detailed information on both travel restrictions and the number of people allowed to gather in certain spaces is available on Dartmouth’s COVID-19 website, Dartmouth Together.

Dartmouth-sponsored international and domestic travel for students, faculty, and staff outside of New Hampshire and Vermont is prohibited until further notice, with the exception of students returning home at the end of the term. In addition, undergraduates enrolled on campus are not permitted to travel outside of the local area (which in New Hampshire is defined as the towns of Hanover, Enfield, Lebanon, including West Lebanon), and in Vermont, the towns of Norwich and Hartford, which includes the Hartford villages of Quechee, West Hartford, White River Junction, and Wilder.

The new guidelines say that gatherings are limited to nine people unless the gatherings are scheduled, approved, and monitored by Dartmouth, in which case up to 25 people may gather. The rules are designed to regulate the scheduled use of communal spaces by organized groups and the use of specific areas that are intended for communal activities, such as meeting rooms and dining facilities.

The new prevention course, which is for students and employees, is called “Staying Healthy in a Changing Environment.” It reviews basic COVID-19 information and Dartmouth policies, procedures, expectations, and resources. The production was made in partnership with EVERFI, an education technology company that has worked with Dartmouth on earlier training initiatives. Students have received an email inviting them to complete the training. Faculty and staff are scheduled to receive an email later this week.

“Participating in this course is an important way that you can contribute to the well-being of our colleagues, friends, and families,” wrote Adams and Keniston in today’s email.

They said COVID-19 testing is continuing at Leverone Field House for staff and faculty who are working on-site or are approved to return to on-site work and for all students.

For the latest information on Dartmouth’s response to the pandemic visit the COVID-19 website.

Susan Boutwell can be reached at susan.j.boutwell@dartmouth.edu.